Trouble in the White House

by Brenda Hampton

  I didn’t reply until she was calm. “I understand everything you’re saying, but please hear me out on this, okay? As president, I can tell you for a fact that when people have an ulterior motive, they can and will plan, scheme, plot, conspire, and do whatever they must to accomplish their mission. I have a lot of enemies, Ina. They will do whatever to go after the ones I love. That includes Joshua. All I want is to be sure about this. Out of respect, I’m asking for you to work with me on this. If you don’t wish to, I’m sorry, but I will take action on my own.”

  There was a sharp silence before Ina responded. “I said no. No! No! No! No, you will not dig up his grave, and I will fight you to the end on this. Let my baby rest in peace, please. I beg you to leave me alone and let him be!”

  The call ended with her hanging up on me. Regardless of how she felt, I had to do what was necessary to find out about my son. Before the weekend was over, I would definitely have some answers.

  Just as I was getting ready to leave the Oval Office to go see if Raynetta had returned from the funeral, Lynda buzzed me again. This time, my mother was on the phone. I needed to speak to her, so I hurried to pick up the receiver.

  “Not on this phone,” I rushed to say. “Call my private line, because I’m about to leave.”

  That wasn’t the reason I wanted her to call my private line, but a few minutes later she called. I sat on the edge of the sofa, listening to her speak to me with a bad attitude.

  “Now that the wicked witch is dead, what are you going to do about Joshua? I hope you now know that he is still alive. The second I saw that heifer Claire with Mr. McNeil, I knew something wasn’t right. Raynetta got something up her sleeve too, and you need—”

  “Don’t go there with Raynetta, all right? She had nothing to do with this. I can promise you that. I do believe that Joshua is alive, and I just spoke to Ina about digging up his grave. She’s against it, but I must find out the truth before I make my next move.”

  “You’re darn right you do, and if you don’t start digging, I will do it myself,” she asserted. “All Ina cares about is that low-life nigga she’s living with. She don’t have time to deal with this, but what kind of mother wouldn’t want to know the truth?”

  “One who is hurting real bad, Mama. This has to be hard for her and—”

  “Yeah, yeah, yeah, whatever,” she said, interrupting me. “You need to stop defending these no-good women and start seeing them for who they really are. The only question I have for you is, when are we going to St. Louis?”

  “I’ll decide, and just so you know, I don’t need your help. Besides, you have a bigger fish to fry. The police want to question you about what happened at that institution. The nurse is pressing charges. From what I’ve been told, she wants a million dollars for her injuries.”

  “A million dollars!” she shouted. “Please. She’d better go sit her tail down somewhere. If I have to pay a million dollars, she’d better have more than a bump on her head. Besides, she was the one who came after me. I was only defending myself.”

  “I’m sure you were, Mother, like always. I’ll see what I can do about this, but in the meantime, why don’t you disappear for a while? Go on vacation and stay out of the way. It’s been tough spinning this thing with Claire. You didn’t have to go that far.”

  “For the sake of Joshua, I did what was necessary. You need to be thankful that you’re not the one seeing darkness right now. I haven’t forgotten about what you did to me. I’m just trying to figure out how I’m going to make you pay for that. I’ll think of something, so don’t you think for one minute that these little conversations between us have calmed me in any way.”

  “I’m shaking all over. If you believe your threats move me, I promise you they don’t. You need to be thankful that you’re not in jail, and after all my efforts to keep you out of there, you’d better think about forgiving and forgetting. It’s in your best interest to do so.”

  “Forgiving and forgetting is the name of your game, not mine. And if you keep playing that game, Raynetta is going to turn your world upside down and make you wish you had listened to me. Don’t say that I didn’t warn you.”

  She hung up, causing me to shake my head. I looked forward to the day when my mother and Raynetta were able to put aside their differences and get along with each other. Unfortunately for me, I couldn’t envision that day coming.

  I spoke briefly by phone with Lynda, then left the Oval Office and headed to Raynetta’s office, which was where Lynda had told me she was. Lynda had said Raynetta had recently returned from Claire’s funeral. I was sure Raynetta had a difficult time there. I’d wanted to attend the funeral with her, but the situation with Claire had left a bad taste in my mouth. Other matters at the White House had taken priority too. I had to meet with the secretary of Health and Human Services earlier, settle certain matters about Claire’s death with the FBI, and speak to Ina about Joshua. Raynetta deserved to know the truth about Claire, the woman she’d considered a friend, and I intended to tell her. But just as I got ready to enter her office, I heard her speaking to someone and halted in my tracks. I stood outside the door, which was ajar, and peeked through the crack while listening in.

  “It’s a shame. I don’t know what I’m going to do without her,” Raynetta said to Alex as he stood beside her in a tailored black suit. She was sitting at her desk, wiping her tears.

  “I’m sure you’ll find someone to replace her soon,” he said. “It’s no fun losing someone you care about, and the good thing is, the person responsible will be caught.”

  “I hope so. I truly hope so, because she didn’t deserve this.”

  As Raynetta cried, Alex opened his jacket, then squatted to her level. He turned her chair to face him, then lifted her chin. “No, she didn’t deserve this, but I don’t want to see you so torn. I want to help you take your mind off this tragedy, so if you want to get out of here and go somewhere to relax, just let me know. I’ll take you wherever you want to go, and that includes shopping. You’re limited to one store, though.”

  Raynetta cracked a tiny smile. “You hate it when I shop, so stop trying to be nice to me. But all shopping is going to do is make me think about Claire. We shopped together a lot. You, of all people, know that she was more than just my assistant.”

  “I’m well aware of that, but keep in mind that I’m here for you too. Think about what I said, and if you want to go somewhere, get some fresh air, or go get a bite to eat, just let me know.”

  Raynetta slowly nodded. That was when I saw Alex gazing into her eyes as if he did more than just care for her. He moved her long, straight hair away from her eye and tucked it behind her ear. His fingers brushed away her tears, and he squeezed her hand with his other hand.

  “I am a little hungry,” she said. “And you already know what I’m craving.”

  He laughed. “For God’s sake, no more of that gooey butter cake from Alison’s Bakery. I’m sick of going to that place. You should be too.”

  “Never in a million years. I love that place, and before we do anything, you have to take me there so I can get a small piece.”

  Gooey butter cake? Her favorite? Since when? This was something new to me, and in no way did I appreciate another man knowing more about my wife than I did. I had seen and heard enough, so I knocked hard on the door before entering. Alex quickly stood, then closed his suit jacket. He wiped across his spiked hair, then moved back when Raynetta walked around him as she made her way to me with open arms.

  “Hi, sweetheart,” she said, wrapping her arms around my waist. I pulled her close to me, and while holding her in my arms, I looked directly at Alex. He stood stone-faced.

  “I need to speak to my wife in private,” I said. “Please exit.”

  “Will do, sir. No problem.”

  He hurried to leave the room and closed the door behind him. Raynetta unwrapped her arms from around my waist, but before we parted, she planted a soft kiss on my lips.

  “I’m disappoin
ted that you couldn’t make it to the funeral with me, but I hope you were able to get some things done around here,” she said.

  “I was, but there is always more to do. I don’t want to bore you with what’s left on my agenda for the day, but before I get back to work, I need to make you aware of certain things pertaining to Claire. When I tell you this, Raynetta, it has to stay between us. It’s going to sting a little too, especially when I tell you that Claire wasn’t exactly the person you thought she was.”

  Raynetta stepped away from me with a perplexed look on her face. I began to tell her everything I knew about Claire and Mr. McNeil’s involvement. I also mentioned the possibility of Joshua being alive. In closing, I made Raynetta aware of Claire’s advances toward me that day. Then I informed her that it was actually my mother who had shot and killed Claire, not an angry companion who was obsessed with her. Raynetta stood with her mouth wide open, touching her chest at the same time.

  “Oh my God, Stephen. I don’t know where to start. Are you saying that Joshua may not be dead, and that Claire and Mr. McNeil were hiding him? I’m speechless. I can’t believe . . .” Raynetta paused, appearing to be in deep thought. “So, your mother killed Claire? I’m so confused right now. Let me go sit down. Please explain all of this to me again.”

  I sat next to Raynetta on the sofa and broke it all down for her again. I confessed to my ongoing lies to protect my mother and addressed Claire’s betrayal. Raynetta looked to be in a daze. She shook her head and let me know how angry she was.

  “Just who can we trust around here?” she questioned. “This is so ridiculous, and I feel so stupid for not realizing what Claire had been up to. She was always in my business, but I didn’t think much of it. I’m glad Teresa intervened when she did, but what about Joshua? How are you going to find out the truth?”

  “I’m working on that now, but let me answer your question about whom we can trust. No one around here can be trusted. Not one single person, especially Alex, who seems as if he has a little crush on you. I hadn’t noticed the two of you getting so close.”

  Raynetta threw her hand back and slightly rolled her eyes. “Alex doesn’t have a crush on me. He’s just really nice, and that’s surprising, because I’ve always been so mean to him. If you’re talking about what he said before you entered the room, he was only looking out for me. That’s what he’s paid to do, and from what he has shared with me, this job means a great deal to him.”

  I shrugged. In no way did Raynetta and I share the same views about Alex. “I hope he’s doing only what he’s paid to do. If he attempts to cross the line in any way, I want you to tell me. I don’t appreciate the look I saw in his eyes. It didn’t come across as concern to me.”

  Raynetta reached over to touch my hand. “It was concern. I’m not the best judge of character, but I do know when a man is interested in me or if he simply cares about me. Alex cares. You, however, are interested.”

  “Very interested,” I noted. “So interested that I would love to lean you back on this sofa right now and make love to you. But before I do that, I have to meet with Andrew about Joshua. I need to get to the bottom of this soon.”

  “You go ahead and do that. Meanwhile, I’m going to let Alex take me a few places so I can clear my head. I hope you’ll beat me to the bedroom tonight. That way, we both can share our major interest in each other.”

  We leaned in at the same time to indulge in a fiery kiss. I hated to back away from it, but the mission to find Joshua weighed heavily on my mind.

  First Lady,

  Raynetta Jefferson

  After Stephen left my office, I went upstairs to change clothes. If I had known what Claire had been up to, I never would have attended her funeral. I couldn’t believe how naive I had been when it came to her. The only thing I could think about was her fake reaction when Mr. McNeil caused me harm that day. Claire had pretended to care, but I would put some money on the fact that she knew what was going to happen. I had entrusted her with so much personal information, and I was sure she’d shared it all with Mr. McNeil. And then to ask Stephen to have sex with her? How conniving was that?

  Teresa had definitely done me a favor, but I couldn’t help but think about the big secret I now had on her. If she ever got out of hand again, I would pull out the killer card and have her sent away for a very long time. Sure, Stephen would be upset with me, but he just didn’t understand what a pain in the ass his mother had been. Nonetheless, all of this left me speechless. The next person who worked for me would be properly screened. Claire had come highly recommended by Andrew. I was sure that Stephen had already chewed him out for recommending her. It was so scary living in the White House. And just like Stephen had said, we couldn’t trust anyone.

  That, of course, included Alex. I had a tiny feeling that he had a crush on me, but admitting that to Stephen would only have caused him to replace Alex. I didn’t want that to happen, simply because I was starting to feel very safe with Alex. I also needed someone like him to communicate with. He understood me, and every woman wanted a man around who could protect her like no other. Stephen was capable of doing that too, but he’d been so busy. This thing with Joshua had him in a different zone.

  I was shocked to learn that there was a possibility Joshua was still alive. I figured Stephen would find out soon enough, but the truth was, I wanted Stephen all to myself. No kids, no baby-mama drama, no nothing. Just me and him, along with our little family, whenever I made a decision to finally give him a child. The good thing was, I was almost to that point.

  I put on a pair of jeans, a black ribbed turtleneck sweater, and ankle boots. My hair was parted down the middle, with straight hair flowing down on both sides. As the first lady, I had been warned not to go anywhere near a mall, but today was a day when I felt like being free. I shielded my eyes with dark sunglasses, hoping that maybe, just maybe, people wouldn’t recognize me. But in no way was that the case. The second Alex opened the door for me to enter the mall, nearly everybody started turning their heads and whispering.

  “Is that the first lady?” one lady said, loud enough for others to hear.

  “That’s not her,” another said. “The first lady isn’t that cute.”

  I wanted to give her a piece of my mind, but I kept on walking, with Alex by my side.

  “One store, and then we’re out of here,” he said. “When I mentioned shopping, I didn’t think you would want to browse a packed mall.”

  “We’re here, so stop complaining, okay? All I want to do is stop by two stores, and then we can go grab a bite to eat,” I replied.

  Alex strolled around with a serious frown on his face. He didn’t appreciate all the attention, and as the crowd started to thicken, more people began to notice me. People waved; I waved back. One lady rushed up to me but was quickly halted by Alex’s hand when he lifted it.

  “Not too close,” he barked. “Back away.”

  “I’m sorry, but may I have your autograph, Mrs. Jefferson?” she asked. “It’s not every day that I come to the mall and get a chance to see our first lady.”

  The woman already had a pen in her hand. She held up the shopping bag that she was carrying, wanting me to sign it. I did so with a smile on my face.

  “There you go. Have a great day and all the best to you,” I told her after I signed the shopping bag.

  “You too!” she shouted, with excitement in her voice. “Thank you!”

  After she walked away, more people tried to approach me. Alex couldn’t handle everyone; he made that clear when he attempted to shove them away. “Move. Back away, or else.”

  Many people ignored Alex. The scene was starting to get chaotic, and questions were coming at me from every direction.

  “Mrs. Jefferson, what did you come here to get?”

  “Can I have your autograph too?”

  “Are you really the first lady or an imposter?”

  “Is the president with you?”

  When a man reached out to grab my arm, that
was when Alex had enough. He pushed the man away so hard that he fell back and skidded on the floor.

  “Back up!” Alex shouted and pointed at the man. “And you, sir, will be arrested if you touch her again.”

  “Damn,” the man said with a frown on his face. “She fine, but she ain’t no Beyoncé. I was just saying hello.”

  I cut my eyes behind the sunglasses, feeling insulted by his words. Many others had backed away, and so Alex was able to pull me in another direction.

  “One store. That’s it,” he demanded. “And make it quick.”

  I went to Neiman Marcus to purchase a purse and a pair of shoes for myself and a shirt for Stephen. The atmosphere was lively there as well—and chaotic. Everyone wanted to take pictures, including the staff. I didn’t mind, but I could tell that Alex was highly upset. The second we returned to the car and climbed in, he shifted in his seat and had a few choice words for me.

  “For some reason, you have a deep desire for attention. I don’t appreciate you putting me in a dangerous situation like that, and just so you know, we both could’ve gotten injured in there.”

  “Breaking news. We didn’t. So chill out and stop being so uptight. All people wanted to do was speak to me and take pictures. And the only desire I have is to get out and live freely sometimes. If you can’t handle the pressure, then maybe I need another agent, one who understands that.”

  That surely changed his tune. On our way to get something to eat, he didn’t say one word to me. I didn’t say anything to him, either, until he drove to the drive-through at McDonald’s.

  “Are you kidding me?” I asked. “Why are we here? I assume it’s to get you something to eat or drink.”