Trouble in the White House

by Brenda Hampton

  Macy had lost it. She was on the floor now, kicking and screaming over a doggone bingo game. The only way they could get her to settle down was by injecting her with a needle. She foamed at the mouth, and while several people stood over her, she gazed at the ceiling without blinking. She was carried out of the room by people who didn’t seem to have her best interests at heart. This was horrible. Maybe I should have just played the damn game. There was no way for me to stand another day of this.

  “Look at what you did,” the other woman growled at me. I was still trying to find out what she knew. “You’re a mean, vicious woman. Just like your whole family. Ugly, hateful people who all deserve what your grandson got.”

  Her words stung, but I remained calm, just to see if she would tell me more. “We’re not that bad, but we do have problems. As for my grandson, he’s okay. I’m positive that he is, but if you know something that I don’t, please tell me.”

  She started to laugh. And while cackling loudly, she slapped her leg. Within seconds, she calmed down, then leaned in closer to whisper, “What I know is, he’s in hell. In hell, where he belongs.” She sat back and started laughing again. This time, she clamped her hand over her mouth, as if she couldn’t control her laughter.

  I wanted to jump across the table and beat her ass. My heart was racing. I refused to accept what Stephen had said and what this woman was now telling me. I needed to go back to my room to think this through and come up with a quick plan to get out of here. With that in mind, I rushed out of the lounging area and hurried back to my room. The second I opened the door, I realized that the room had turned even colder. Raynetta was sitting on my bed, paging through a magazine. A smile was on her face, but my expression was flat.

  “Hey, Mama,” she said, closing the magazine. “How are you doing? You don’t look so good. Maybe you should come over here and lie down.”

  While I was in dire need to speak to and see someone from the outside, I damn sure didn’t appreciate seeing Raynetta. I hated for her to see me like this, and I pretended as if this place wasn’t as bad as it really was.

  “I don’t look well because I’m tired and I want to see my son. Where is he? And please tell me what really happened to my grandson.”

  Raynetta got off the bed. She walked up to me with something in her eyes I had never seen before. Maybe it was the look of victory.

  “You did your best to destroy my marriage, but I came to tell you that you failed. I can’t believe that I stand here feeling so sorry for you today, and the last thing I wanted to do was tell you that your grandson is no longer alive. Because of your actions, you missed the funeral. You have no idea how much hurt you caused Stephen, and I hope that you take the next week, months, or years that you’ll be in here to reflect on the damage you’ve caused. I’ll be the only one visiting you, and I will determine when I feel as if you’ve learned your lesson. So think before you speak. And never, my dear mammy-in-law, never bite the hand that will feed you, going forward.”

  After I heard about Joshua from Raynetta, things started to sink in slowly. But no matter what, she wasn’t going to control me.

  “The only things you’ll be feeding around here are the birds. Stephen is not going to leave me in here much longer, and I—”

  She cut me off by wagging her finger from side to side in front of my face. “Please don’t fool yourself. You know how stubborn Stephen can be, and trust me when I say he is not thinking about you. Not after what you did, and this time, you blew it. His focus is on everything else but you. He does have an entire country to run, so I think you’d better figure out how you’re going to adjust to this cozy little room you’ll soon be calling home. It’s quite a change from your beautiful house, but I’m sure you’ll manage.”

  I stepped closer to Raynetta, and as I reached up to slap her face, she grabbed my hand. I snatched it away from her and spoke through gritted teeth.

  “I will manage, because that’s what strong women do. No matter what situation we’re in, we always find a way. Now, get your trashy ass out of here, and don’t worry about coming back. Stephen will come for me soon enough. That, my dear, I am sure of.”

  Raynetta chuckled as she walked to the door. This time, I snatched her up by the hair on the back of her head and pulled on it.

  “We’ll see who has the last laugh! Good-bye, bitch. I’ll see you soon,” I told her.

  Without a doubt, Raynetta was stronger than I was. She loosened my grip on her hair, then shoved me on the bed. “Maybe you will see me, and maybe you won’t. I’ll make that decision, and just so you know, the people around here will do whatever I tell them to do. You are in for a big surprise.”

  Not saying another word, she left the room. And with Raynetta in control of things, I figured that I’d better think of something fast to get out of here.

  Later that day, I moseyed around, looking for an out. Security was posted at every door, and the entire place was heavily monitored. The only choice I had was to hurt somebody to get out of here. And right before the new shift came on at three o’clock in the morning, I buzzed the nurses’ station and asked one of them to come into my room. She came in and turned on the recessed lighting so that it was dim. I pretended as if my back had been bothering me, and considering that I’d been complaining about it all along, the nurse wasn’t surprised.

  “I’ll bring you some pain medicine,” she said. “Try to get some rest.”

  “I’m trying, but it feels like something is stuck in my back. Can you come over here to take a look at it?”

  The nurse walked closer to the bed to observe my back. She pressed my spine and asked if she was touching the right spot.

  “Not right there. Farther up. I feel a lump or something. Is anything there?”

  “I don’t see anything. Let me brighten the lights.”

  As soon as she turned around, I clocked her across the head with a glass shoe that was supposed to keep my books locked in place on the bookshelf. The blow knocked her out and caused her to crash to the floor. The thud was loud, so I had to hurry up, strip her clothes off, and put them on me. I also needed her badge. Her glasses helped me disguise myself even more. Wasting no time, I eased out of the room, hoping that the hallway was clear. It was. There were a few nurses behind a workstation at the far end of the hall. I had to go that way in order to exit the building.

  Slightly nervous, I turned my head and didn’t dare look in their direction. Down the hall I went, and from a distance, I could see several staff members changing shifts. Some were coming in, while others were going out. A security guard was there, saying hello as well as good-bye. And as I approached him, thankfully, his head was turned in the other direction. We never even made eye contact, and before I knew it, I was able to suck in a heap of the fresh air outside.

  President of the United States,

  Stephen C. Jefferson

  The Millennials Summit truly lifted my spirits. It was a joy to sit among so many intelligent young adults from all backgrounds who seemed eager and ready for the future. I enjoyed hearing some of their ideas, and I provided the best advice that I could to them. I hadn’t laughed in quite some time, and each and every seminar was full of excitement. Everyone was tuned in, even the media, who followed me everywhere I went. I conducted plenty of interviews, and at the end of the first day, it was refreshing finally to hear some positive words being spoken about me on the news.

  “The president has these young people fired up,” one reporter said. “The energy in every room was sky high. It has been a long time since I’ve attended a summit like this one. I interviewed a young lady earlier who was beaming about being here. She referred to it as a life-changing experience, and this is what she had to say about the president.”

  The TV screen switched to the interview.

  “On a scale from one to ten, how would you rate the president’s performance today and his overall performance as the president?” the reporter asked.

  “On a scale from one to te
n, I give his performance today a twenty. He was so down to earth, and his corny jokes made all of us laugh. The advice he gave us was helpful in so many ways, and I was totally shocked because he seemed so different. He seems much more aggressive and non-approachable when you see him on TV. But in person, he’s the real deal. As for his overall performance as president, I’ll give him a seven or eight. I have some issues with the new executive orders he put in place, and I wish he would reach across the aisle more to work with Congress. If he did that, I would probably give him a nine or ten.”

  “I’m sure he appreciates your input,” said the reporter. “I’m also glad that you’re having a good time. What other plans do you and some of the other attendees have?”

  The young lady went on to speak about her plans for tonight and tomorrow. I did appreciate her comments, even though not many people knew that some of our congressional leaders had flat-out refused to work with me. Standing by and doing nothing didn’t work for me. That was why I would probably go down in history as the president who signed the most executive orders ever. According to the statistics compiled by American Presidency Project, Franklin Roosevelt issued 3,522 executive orders during his presidency. Obama issued the fewest, between 147 and 151. Many had accused him of issuing more executive orders than any other president, but I would own that title and would do so with great pride.

  Surely, lawsuits would be filed, because the truth was, there were limitations to what I could actually do as president. I had overstepped, but I didn’t care. I had to send a message to America, and that message was, “Enough is enough.” I expected the Supreme Court to get involved and make some crucial decisions. But I was in a very good position. I would have to appoint the next Supreme Court justice, and as I’d said before, some shit was about to change.

  Things had settled down for the day, and after tomorrow, I was heading to Syria, Iraq, and then Afghanistan. There was a substantial number of troops on the ground, simply because many terrorist organizations had been brewing there for years. I was looking forward to going there, especially since I knew that our efforts to go after some of the leaders had picked up. I was being briefed on a regular basis about a very sticky situation in Syria. If things went according to plan, I would soon have my wish.

  Michelle’s news organization had come to cover the summit one day before my arrival. I was glad to see her well and working again. After my speech the other day, she’d come after me to find out how I’d been doing. She’d also asked if I would call her so we could catch up. Knowing that she would be here, I’d invited her to dinner with me. Nothing too private, but I was sure that the Secret Service would keep the people around us to a minimum.

  With a soft blue Ralph Lauren oxford shirt tucked neatly in my dark stonewashed Levi’s, I sat on the bed to put on my brown leather shoes. My face was already shaved cleanly, and I was proud about the silky glow of my brown skin. My cologne was on point, my mood was at the right level, and my wedding ring was still on my finger. I twirled it around my finger, thinking about Raynetta. In no way would she approve of me having dinner with Michelle, and I was almost 100 percent positive that my outing would get back to her. I couldn’t say that I wouldn’t care, because deep down, I knew I would. I just didn’t want to think about Raynetta right now. She had taken me to a level that had left me speechless, and I still wasn’t sure how to deal with her lies. I pushed our issues to the back of my mind. Since I was already late, I headed to the dining room, where I assumed Michelle awaited me.

  Sure enough, when I arrived at the dining room, Michelle was already there. She was way more dressed up than I was, and the tan, silky dress she wore showed a nice portion of her flawless chocolate skin. Her dress was strapless. I could see the way it had melted on her perfect curves as she sat in the chair. Her head was full of natural curls that barely touched the top of her shoulders. With her perfectly arched brows and her light makeup on, there was no denying that she was simply beautiful. I knew that I was putting myself in a bad situation this evening. I could’ve just stayed in my room and gotten some work done. Also could’ve joined some of the young adults I’d met earlier who tried to convince me to have pizza with them. Instead, there I was with Michelle, visualizing in my mind what would ultimately happen tonight. She already had me to a point where there was no turning back.

  The dimly lit dining room was pretty quiet. There were only three other groups occupying tables. A couple of people were at the bar, and Secret Service agents were nearby. Michelle didn’t see me coming. Her head was down; she appeared to be occupied with a notepad. When her pen rolled away from the pad, that was when she looked up and saw me. Her hazel eyes were tranquilizing. The same could be said for her smile. She searched me from head to midsection to toe. I didn’t have to inquire about what was on her mind.

  “You are ten minutes late, Mr. President. How dare you keep me waiting?” she teased.

  “Forgive me,” I said, bending over to kiss her cheek. “I was in the process of wrapping up an important phone call.”

  “All is forgiven. I’m glad you’re here, and I’m delighted that you asked me to join you.”

  “You’re welcome. I just couldn’t think of a better way to end this amazing day.”

  I took a seat, and without any hesitation, Michelle and I jumped right into a spirited conversation.

  “I’m having so much fun here,” she said. “I miss my kids, but they’re at home with the sitter. I noticed that you’re having a good time as well. The people around here can’t stop talking about you.”

  I blushed, feeling good about that. “Well, what can I say? I tend to have that effect on people once they get to know me.”

  Michelle laughed. “You got that right. I won’t dispute that, because you’ve certainly had an effect on me. You helped me get through some tough times, and when I look back on my long relationship with my husband, I can’t help but to think how stupid I was for staying with that man.”

  “I’m glad you’re better, but you weren’t stupid. Like most people, you just wanted your marriage to work.”

  “Yes, I did, but this is a new day. What about you, though? How’s your marriage these days? Are you still trying to get it to work?”

  Before I answered, the waiter came to the table. Our food had already been prepared, as well as inspected.

  “Dinner will be served soon, Mr. President. Would either of you like something to drink, such as an alcoholic beverage?”

  “No, thank you,” I said. “I don’t drink, but the lady may want something.”

  The waiter turned to Michelle.

  “I’ll have a glass of white chardonnay. And if you don’t mind, can you please put my salad dressing on the side, instead of on top of my salad?” she said.

  “No problem. Let me know if you need anything else.”

  The room was so dim that the waiter took a minute to light a candle that was in the center of the table. Then he walked off, and we resumed our conversation.

  “To answer your question, my marriage is in the same condition that it has always been in. I can’t say anything other than that, and to be honest, I prefer not to discuss that right now,” I told Michelle.

  “I prefer not to, either, so let me change the subject. I was saddened to hear about your son. How have you been able to cope with that whole issue?”

  I shrugged. Didn’t want to go there, either. “That’s another subject I prefer not to discuss.”

  “Okay. Then tell me what we should talk about. I’ll follow your lead, and just so you know, I’m happy to do that.”

  I looked at Michelle through the flame at the top of the candle. My mind traveled to the last time I’d had sex with her—it was, indeed, a perfect ten. Her lips worked wonders, and just the mere thought of her riding me made my steel react. I wiped down my face, then sat up straight.

  “I think we should talk about us,” I said.

  “What about us?”

  “About why I keep finding myself in your pr
esence, even when this is not where I need to be.”

  She quickly fired back. “I beg to differ. I think that we keep finding ourselves in the presence of each other because this is exactly where we should be.”

  The waiter came back with Michelle’s wine. He also had our salads. Mine was drizzled with a vinaigrette dressing, and Michelle’s dressing was on the side, just as she had asked. After the waiter poured her wine, she took a sip, thanked the waiter, and then waited for me to respond. I did after the waiter walked away.

  “No. I would have to disagree with you. In no way are we exactly where we should be. I can think of a place that is much better than this.”

  She looked inquisitively at me while sipping more wine. “Like I said before, I’m willing to follow your lead wherever it takes us. I trust your judgment.”

  “Never trust a married man or his judgment. That can get you in trouble. But following my lead is perfectly fine with me, because I suggest that we push these salads aside and save dinner for another time.”

  She glanced at her salad, then shifted her eyes back to me. “So, you’re not hungry anymore? Is that what you’re saying?”

  “I’m real hungry. Starving, to be exact. But in no way will food satisfy me.”

  “Not only am I with you on that, but I’m also so far ahead of you. Give me two minutes to go to the restroom, and then meet me by the elevator so we can go upstairs to my room.”

  “You go ahead and handle your business. I’ll meet you upstairs in about ten or fifteen minutes. I need to check in with the Secret Service, and then I assure you that we will both eat.”

  Michelle finished off her glass of wine before standing to leave. The dress looked even better when she stood. Even the men sitting far away from us had to turn their heads to take a double look. Sexy as ever, she walked off in her strappy high heels. Her walk alone made my muscle react. Why did she have to be so damn sexy?