Chapter 17
Chapter Seventeen
“This way.” The woman walking ahead of them wasn’t Secret Service. She looked more like some low-level staff person. An assistant, but in the White House of all places.
This woman didn’t have to worry about protecting herself from the threat Kenna and Jax presented, because the Secret Service had divested them of every weapon they’d been carrying and their phones before they could even set foot in the door.
Jax hadn’t been happy that the government would have unfettered access to their cell phones while they were in this meeting, but there wasn’t much they could do beyond accept AD Ranturno’s word that wasn’t going to happen.
Kenna held on to Jax’s hand through the hall with its high ceilings and ornate artwork above the center rail that ran along the wall.
Wallpaper under it and cream paint above.
It would be impressive if they were here for the tour, but being torn away from what they had been working on and summoned against their will to a secret meeting meant she refused to admit this place was awe-inspiring just on principle.
The assistant gestured. “Follow me.” She wore a knee-length skirt, white blouse with a jacket over it, and flat shoes. Pantyhose. A short haircut she could tuck behind her ears and horn-rimmed glasses.
They descended a set of carpeted stairs in the corner of the building.
Kenna didn’t know enough about the place to know where they were, but she was pretty sure this wasn’t part of any normal tour.
The artwork grew sparser, and downstairs was a whole lot more utilitarian.
This wasn’t somewhere the public got to see.
Jax said, “Is it true the White House has as many floors below ground as there are above?”
The assistant glanced back at him but said nothing. “This way.”
She kept walking down the hall, making her comment redundant since that’s what they were doing.
Without taking a turn, because there weren’t any until the end.
It was a long corridor with closed doors on either side, all labeled with numbers.
At the end, the corner took a sharp right angle, and beyond that was a set of double doors. A red light above.
Kenna glanced at her husband and nearly laughed at the look of wonder on his face. Okay, so that was adorable. He was totally geeking out about being in the White House.
She leaned over as they walked. “Maybe we should come back and do the tour,” she whispered. “We can pretend to be from out of town.”
The assistant stopped at the door and produced a key card from her pocket. After a hard swipe through a card reader, the light turned green. She opened the door for them but stayed in the hall. “Through here.”
Jax went first, still holding Kenna’s hand.
A few steps in, he stopped. Instinct she didn’t understand had her wanting to stay behind him, tucked at his back where she was protected and no one could see her, or get a good angle for attack. The door shut behind her, bumping her forward with the heavy sound.
“Mr. Jaxton.” The voice of the president of the United States of America wasn’t a voice you’d fail to recognize. She just had that tough, weathered tone to her. The commander in chief because her predecessor had died, and as vice president, she had immediately been sworn into office. “Mrs. Jaxton.”
Kenna looked over the shiny wood conference table and at least twelve high-backed leather chairs.
The president, Miriam Tetherton, walked from the far end where there was a small cabinet with a water pitcher and glasses and a glass decanter of something that looked like bourbon, over to them, holding her hand out.
But she wasn’t alone in the room.
Kenna shifted to Jax’s right and met the president’s outstretched hand with her own. “Madam President. Not to be rude, it’s nice to meet you and all…” Maybe. Depending. “But this isn’t a conversation I’m interested in having.” She pointed to the man over on the far left of the room. “Not with him.”
“Kenna?” Jax glanced from the man to her and Tetherton, wariness in his body language.
“I can understand your reticence.” The president clasped her hands together in front of her, showing off the muscle tone in her biceps thanks to the sleeveless dress.
Miriam Tetherton looked like a CEO, which fit.
Even down here, meeting like this in low light in a secret room, she was going to play boss and politician.
“It’s not reticence. It’s dislike.” She glanced at him.
“You knew if I’d known you were here that I never would’ve gotten in that car.
That’s why no one informed me.” Kenna looked at the president.
“We already know you’re either with Dominatus or you’re someone they control so thoroughly they’re willing to risk installing you as president, because they’re in control either way.
So I guess we know what your deal is, but not why we’re here. ”
Tetherton’s expression remained neutral. “We all have a part to play.”
“I don’t.” Kenna lifted her hands. “My family has no part. We’re nothing to do with any of you. If I thought it would do any good, I’d tell you to pass that on up the chain.”
Jax shifted, and she knew he needed an explanation.
Kenna took his hand, holding on tight. “Jax, this is Petyr Blazevic, the Croatian head of their military.”
“The treaty.” Jax’s tone indicated dislike, but it wasn’t about politics. “And the bombing.”
“He and I have met before, of course. When he visited the platform where I was being held prisoner so they could experiment on me.” Kenna glanced at the president, just to see if she had any empathy in her, or a clue as to what was happening.
A slight flex of the skin around her eyes was the only tell.
“Not to be on the nose or anything…” Except Kenna had no problem with that. “But I hope you know what you got yourself into.”
The president had a strained look on her face. “Perhaps we could sit.”
Kenna glanced at Petyr. He lifted a glass of the alcohol from the decanter and sipped without saying anything. She said, “You want us to hear you out?”
Petyr lowered the glass. “Someone is trying to kill me.”
“How do you know it isn’t me?” Kenna said.
The president turned to her. “Is it?”
“I’ve been busy.”
Jax squeezed her hand a fraction. “I’d like to hear you both out. I’m guessing Kenna is safe here in this house.”
“It’s the safest house in the world.” The president moved down the table, ushering them over to sit by her and pulled out the chair at the head of the table. “I can assure you we didn’t bring you here to do either of you harm. You have nothing to fear here.”
Kenna didn’t know if she was prepared to believe that. Petyr took a seat on the other side of the table, and Jax sat beside Kenna opposite him.
“First of all, thank you for coming.” The president laced her fingers together on the table. “As you can imagine, we’re concerned as to the threat level this treaty presents. After the bombing, it’s become clear that steps need to be taken to neutralize any potential risk.”
Kenna bit back what she wanted to say and kept her lips pressed tight together. The president surely had people for that, Kenna didn’t consider it any of her business, and what did they want from her and Jax anyway?
She looked across the table at Petyr. He always wore a similar suit, and today’s tie was blue with gold stripes at an angle. His dark hair was slicked back, threaded with gray on the sides. Thick brows and a heavy forehead. Piercing eyes that looked almost black.
The president continued, “We have reason to believe someone is intending to influence the upcoming vote for the new Imperatoris.”
Jax said, “Dominatus is voting in a new leader?”
“Petyr is one of the top contenders.” Kenna bent her knee and put her foot on the chair, trying to appear as casual as possible.
Like none of this meant anything to her.
Problem was, making that position work meant drawing attention to her growing midsection.
“The president can’t be in charge because she’s female, and Dominatus doesn’t get with all that progressive stuff.
They only want a male in charge, and he can’t be a head of state.
They’re too busy. Commander in chief of the Croatian military is a gray area, unless Petyr quits, which he’s thinking about doing if he wins the vote. ”
“For the greater good.” He lifted his glass in a toast. “For the future.”
Kenna glanced at Jax. “When he drinks too much, he gets chatty. He told me about all of it during his visit to the platform.”
A tendon flexed in Jax’s jaw.
Honestly, seeing how much he disliked the entire thing helped keep her steady enough to glance between them. “What do you want? The culprits of the bombing have been arrested, so what is there for me to investigate? Or you’d rather I act as a human shield in case it happens again.”
The president gasped.
Petyr slammed his glass against the table hard enough some of the liquid sloshed out. “We would never endanger—”
“One of your children.” Kenna glared at him. “I have that right, yeah? That’s what you were going to say?”
“The sanctity of life is one of our highest values. It’s why we do what we do.”
The president crossed her arms. “No one in Dominatus would dare harm an unborn child. It’s simply not done!”
“Glad we got that straight.” Kenna swiveled her chair side to side an inch to try and ease some of the tension she felt.
“I’m relieved to hear it,” Jax said, “but I’m not satisfied by any means.” He stared across the table at the Croatian man. “Don’t take my remaining placid as indication I intend to do nothing.”
Petyr inclined his head just a fraction.
The last thing Kenna needed is a rapport between them based on something akin to respect. “You still haven’t told us what you want.”
“We aren’t going to ask you to put your life in harm’s way,” the president told her. “Of course, we would never ask you that.”
“Maybe you should give me a Secret Service detail. Tell them I’m a diplomat.” Kenna would find that hilarious, but she also wouldn’t trust even the most upright federal agent right now. She’d rather have Ramon and Zeyla any day. The two of them were worth an army.
“Unfortunately, I’m unable to devote additional resources to your protection. As much as I might like to.”
“How reassuring Dominatus cares about my well-being,” Kenna mocked. “That’s so nice.” She wanted to continue arguing the point about her captivity, or why they wanted her baby safe and what that meant for their future. But she kept her mouth shut so the president would continue.
“We’re dealing with a threat from within.
” President Tetherton flashed a plastic smile.
“As you can understand, it’s difficult for me to devote resources to an internal manhunt.
Especially where the Pentagon is concerned.
I’m new to this position, and right now isn’t time to start ruffling feathers.
Which presents me with a problem that requires an alternate solution.
” She reached under the table, pulled out a file folder, and pushed it to Kenna.
“Take this with you. It’s everything I have. ”
“I don’t have time for a case right now. Even if Dominatus can afford me, why would do a job for people I despise?”
From across the table, Petyr said, “Because we are the reason you’re alive.”
“You’re also the source of any and all threats. So you wanna run that one by me again? How you’re the solution to the threat, or like you’ve done anything to keep me safe?”
“My English. It isn’t stellar.” He took a sip of his drink.
“That’s a lame excuse, and you understand just fine.”
Jax picked up where she left off. “We aren’t available right now. We’re working another case, and two at once isn’t advisable. Not when the lives of people we care about are on the line.”
The president said, “The case against the lawyers is open-and-shut. There’s nothing to investigate. I’m told—”
“You just admitted there’s someone working against you in your own government, and you’re going to bank what you believe on what you’re told?” Jax glanced at Petyr, then back at the president. “I’m not sure that’s wise.”
“Be that as it may, you now have differing priorities.”
Kenna shook her head. “You guys think we should just jump when you say so. What a shocker.”
“I’m flabbergasted.” Jax sounded like he’d been forced to watch paint dry.
She almost smiled.
President Tetherton said, “There’s time for you to help the lawyers. They aren’t going anywhere. This is time sensitive and deserves your undivided attention.”
“Because you say so.” Kenna flipped open the file just for curiosity’s sake. A police report from Baltimore PD, a murder scene. One male deceased. She turned the first page and saw a photo. “Why do I care about the death of a guy who worked in the Pentagon?”
“Someone is killing us. One by one.” The president shivered. “I can’t bring this to the attention of anyone who works for me without disclosing my…allegiances.”
“So you want me to find whoever is murdering Dominatus operatives? I’m liable to shake their hand.” Kenna put her foot down and stood, pushing the chair back. “This was a waste of time.”
“They aren’t killing assets. They’re killing offspring.” The president sat back in her chair. “Which means if there’s a list, then you’re on it. Who knows…you might even be next.”