Chapter Five #3
“He might’ve gotten away with the ruse if one of the Secret Service agents hadn’t come back from vacation, recognized him and sounded the alarm that Prentess was actually Sergei Ivanov, the Russian opposition leader.
We investigated Mr. Ivanov and learned he was a classmate of the vice president’s at Oxford and that no one by the name of Lionel Prentess ever attended the university.
Vice President Henderson and Ivanov were close friends during their postgraduate work in international relations.
We believe they also dated for some time. ”
Nick was now actively queasy and more than a little furious. “Her relationship with a Russian national wasn’t disclosed during the vetting process?”
“No, sir, it wasn’t and she didn’t disclose that she was currently in touch with him or his alias, which is a violation of Security Executive Agent Directive 3, issued by the Director of National Intelligence.
I’m looking into how his presence in the country was missed, because once the agent recognized him, it didn’t take much digging for us to find the connection.
However, without the agent identifying him, we might never have known who he really was. ”
Even better. Now they would look like clowns for missing it during vetting as well as at the point of entry and relying on a stroke of luck to catch the current deception.
“At a bare minimum,” Teresa continued, “I recommend that her security clearance be immediately suspended along with all access to classified systems and information.”
“Do it. What do we know about Ivanov?”
“As the head of the Russian opposition, his stated goal is to overthrow the Petrov regime through any means necessary.”
Oh my God. Of course Nick knew Ivanov’s name and was familiar with his movement, but to hear his goals expressed in such stark terms was sobering.
“What in the world could Gretchen have been thinking, seeing him at all, let alone at her official residence?”
“We’d like to know the answer to that as well,” Teresa said, “and planned to speak directly to her after we briefed you on the situation.”
“Have you discussed this with DNI?” he asked, referring to the Director of National Intelligence.
“Not yet, sir. We brought it to you first.”
“Tell me what this means, Teresa.”
“I’m not entirely sure, sir, but it’s extremely concerning, to say the least. There’s no doubt the Kremlin is aware that he’s spent time with the vice president at the Naval Observatory.
Their take on it would be that we’re plotting with him against Petrov.
If she passed along classified information or sensitive national security data to him, that could be prosecuted as a felony under the Espionage Act. ”
Nick felt like he’d been punched. No one wanted Petrov gone more than he did, especially since he’d invaded Ukraine in a violent quest to expand his empire, but Nick’s government wasn’t actively conspiring with Petrov’s chief adversary.
At least as far as he knew, that wasn’t happening—and if it was, heads would roll, beginning with the vice president’s.
Choosing her for VP had been his first major move as president, and now that was blowing up in his face.
“How many times has he visited her at the observatory?” Nick asked.
“In the last three weeks, he’s been there six times.
Prior to that, he was in Moscow for three months after a stint in London.
We’re working to further track his movements and to determine more about his resistance work, as well as trying to find out who else he’s been meeting with while he’s here. ”
Nick tried to wrap his head around the situation and couldn’t. It was unbelievable. “A Russian national, who’s actively working to overthrow Petrov, is spending time with the vice president of the United States at her official residence.”
“Yes, sir.”
“How long has he stayed for each of these visits?”
“He’s spent the night each time.”
The consequences of his vice president’s foolish actions would be swift and brutal. He took a sip of water in a desperate attempt to stay calm as he contemplated the many, many ways this situation could destroy his presidency, not to mention cause a major diplomatic incident with Russia.
Sam had said from the beginning that something about Gretchen rubbed her the wrong way.
She’d gotten one of her gut feelings about the vice president and had never wavered in the months since then that there was something off about Gretchen Henderson.
Was this what she’d picked up on? Was Gretchen a double agent working with the Russian opposition while serving as his vice president? That couldn’t be true. Could it?
“Excuse me,” Nick said to Teresa as he left the Oval Office for his attached private office and restroom.
He went straight to the sink to splash cold water on his face as he choked back the bile that threatened to come up at any second.
If he’d had a choice, he would’ve walked out of the office, gotten into his car and driven away without looking back—as long as he could bring Sam, the kids and Skippy the dog with him, of course.
But since that wasn’t an option, he pulled himself together as best he could, and when he was certain he wouldn’t vomit, he returned to the Oval Office, where Teresa waited patiently for him.
“What’s our next move?” he asked when he’d returned to his seat facing her.
“I’d like to ask the vice president to join us, if you’re amenable.”
“Please tell her I’d like to see her right away.”
“Yes, sir. I’ll be back with her.”