Chapter Twenty
Nick was incandescent with rage as he waited in the Oval Office for the Russian ambassador to arrive.
Alexi Sokolov should’ve been there by now.
Terry was working on finding out what was keeping him.
If the bombing at HQ was tied back to the Russians, he would hold them—and Gretchen Henderson—fully responsible.
They’d actually had the nerve to bomb his wife’s workplace.
What the actual fuck had they been thinking?
Terry returned to the Oval. “He’ll be here in ten.”
“What’s taking so long?”
“He was in a meeting that needed to be completed when you summoned him.”
“His meeting should’ve been interrupted after the president requested his presence.”
“I agree, sir. I made that clear to the staffer I spoke with.”
They waited another fifteen minutes before Nick’s admin, Julie, announced the Russian ambassador’s arrival.
“Mr. President, I apologize for the delay,” Sokolov said, his English heavily accented. He was about six feet tall, with salt-and-pepper hair and a regal bearing.
“I’d like to know what’s become of Sergei Ivanov.”
His brows furrowed. “Sir?”
“Please don’t play dumb with me, Ambassador.
The Russian opposition leader was murdered, dumped into the street by an SUV with diplomatic plates and taken to the morgue at the Metropolitan Police Department headquarters, which was then bombed.
When the dust settled, Ivanov’s body had been removed from the morgue, along with a young woman, who was an innocent bystander. ”
“And you are accusing us of these crimes, Mr. President?”
Nick looked him dead in the eyes. “I am.”
“Well,” he huffed, “this is an outrage!”
“Indeed, it is. Unless you’d like your entire delegation promptly expelled from the United States, you’ll return Ivanov’s body to the morgue, release the young woman, arrest the people who carried out the bombing and turn them over to federal authorities.
If those things aren’t done by six p.m., your diplomatic mission to the United States will be over so fast, your head will spin and this terrorist attack will be treated as an act of war. Am I clear?”
Sokolov attempted to stare him down—and failed. He stormed out of the office, slamming the door on the way.
“That went well,” Nick said to Terry.
He chuckled. “For you, maybe. Will you kick them out?”
“Hell yes, I will. They bombed my wife’s workplace.”
“And you’re sure it’s them?”
“Who else would have the motive or means to set off a bomb to steal the body of their fiercest critic?”
“So you think they’ve got bombs at the ready over at the embassy?”
“Would you put it past them?”
“No, sir.”
“They’ll see to my instructions, which will confirm my suspicions about who was behind the bombing.”
“Then what?”
“We’ll have a conversation with President Petrov about his delegation’s behavior and our expectations for him to get them under control.”
“And what will you say when he mentions how your vice president was in cahoots with Ivanov?”
“I’ll say that she’s been appropriately dealt with, is no longer a representative of my government and her behavior is being thoroughly investigated by law enforcement.
Though I’m not in any way advocating for regime change, I fully support Ivanov’s efforts to bring fair and democratic elections to Russia. ”
“He won’t like that.”
“Tough shit. I don’t like fascists who murder people simply because they don’t agree with him or invade sovereign nations in a massive land grab. I don’t like that at all, and he already knows that.”
“Your support for Ukraine and its people says it all.”
“Keep me posted on their compliance.”
“I will, sir. We’re ready for you in the briefing room.”
“Let’s get that over with,” Nick said with a sigh, knowing that once he made it official, the speculation about the full story would be brutal.
He followed Terry to the briefing room. When Christina announced that the president would be making a statement, the room went silent, and the reporters sat up straighter in their chairs.
“I’ve requested and received the resignation of Vice President Gretchen Henderson.
” A gasp went through the room. “We’ll soon begin the process of vetting a new vice president.
I understand that you have questions about what led to her resignation, and more information about that will be released in the coming days.
For now, I’ll have nothing further to say about this matter.
On another note, I’ve made the full resources of the federal government available to the Metropolitan Police Department as we investigate the explosion there today.
We’ll keep you informed of developments in that investigation as they become available. Thank you for your attention.”
He turned to leave the room as they shouted questions at him about Gretchen and Sam and the bombing that he ignored. Gretchen could clean up her own mess.
“Get her out of here and out of the Naval Observatory immediately,” Nick said to Terry as they walked back to the Oval Office.
“Yes, sir.”
“Holy crap,” Freddie said as he scrolled on his phone. “Nick fired the vice president.”
Sam was glad to hear the deed had been done, and Gretchen Henderson was officially out of their lives.
“Did you know that was coming?” he asked.
“I’d heard rumblings.”
“What’d she do?”
“It’s related to Ivanov.”
“What?”
“She knew him from Oxford, and apparently, he’d been visiting her at the Naval Observatory.”
“Holy shit. Nick must be…”
“He’s outraged. While he fully supports Ivanov’s work, there’s no way he could say so publicly without starting something with Petrov. The last thing in the world he needed was his vice president shacking up with Petrov’s most-effective critic.”
“They were shacking up?”
“Apparently, he spent several nights at the observatory.”
“Wow. What did she say when Nick demanded she resign?”
“I guess she was very upset, but what the hell did she expect? She claims they’re old friends and it was nothing official, but because of who she is, of course it was, you know?”
“Absolutely. Extremely poor judgment on her part.”
“That’s the thing that’s bugging me. I didn’t get a good feeling from her, but I never thought she was stupid enough to do something like this and expect to get away with it.”
“Wouldn’t the intelligence community know he was in the country and be keeping an eye on him?”
“I’m the last person to ask about how that works.”
“They should’ve known.”
“Which will be another thing he has to deal with,” Sam said with a sigh. “What a mess.”
“The AP is reporting that the Russian ambassador was seen at the White House and left looking furious,” Freddie said.
Sam’s BlackBerry vibrated in her pocket. She retrieved it to find a message from Nick. Two packages will be returned to you shortly.
Sam called him.
“Hey.”
“What two packages?”
“The two that were taken.”
“And the bombing?”
“Expect some clarity there as well.”
“Well, look at you cleaning things up for me.”
“I do what I can for my person.”
“Trademarked.”
“You’re literally the only person who could make me smile right now.”
“I do what I can for my person. How’re you holding up?”
“It’s been a day—and a half.”
“Aren’t they all.”
“This one more so than most. I’m still trying to figure out what she could’ve been thinking, but that’s no longer my problem. I’m focused on finding a new vice president.”
“I’m very sorry she disappointed you so profoundly.”
“I am, too. Have you heard anything about Joe?”
“He’s got a concussion and a broken wrist that’ll require surgery. In other news, Jeannie had her baby.”
“Isn’t it too early?”
“Six weeks early, but she and the baby are both okay. Ava Joy McBride Wilkinson has joined the family.”
“Oh wow, that’s great news, but they must be reeling.”
“I’m sure they are, but Mom and baby are healthy, which is what matters most. I need to make sure Amara is safe before I leave. Today has been one of the more fucked-up days in my professional life, too.”
“And much of it is related to my fucked-up day, which is crazy.”
“All of which is saying something, since many of our days are fucked up.”
“True. Shoot me a text when you’re on the way home. I need some family time tonight after this day.”
“You got it. I love you.”
“I love you, too.”
Sam ended the call, feeling concerned about him.
His job was a tremendous load on a good day.
On days like this, she worried about him having a heart attack or some other dreadful thing.
With that in mind, she texted their close friend and the White House medical director, Dr. Harry Flynn, on the BlackBerry.
Nick has had one hell of a day. Will you please check on him?
Absolutely. I’m on it. Don’t worry.
I am worried. It’s a lot.
I know.
Thank you for checking.
No problem at all.
“Is he okay?” Freddie asked.
“Not at all. I asked Harry to touch base with him.”
“That’s a good idea.”
“I worry about his head exploding or something equally dire.”
“He’ll be all right.”
“You sound so confident.”
“If anyone can handle this crap, he can.”
“This is a lot, though. Finding out his VP was hanging out with the Russian opposition leader and never thought to mention to Nick that he was an old friend who’d be staying with her, or whatever they were doing.”
“You think they’re romantically involved?”
“I don’t know. She’s divorced from the father of her children and single as far as I know.”
“Why didn’t her friend the Russian come up in the vetting?”
“I’m sure that’s one of many questions Nick will be asking his team.”
Nick sat behind the Resolute Desk to record a message to the nation.
“My fellow Americans, today we announced that Gretchen Henderson would be resigning as vice president of the United States. It has come to my attention that a conflict of interest will prevent her from completing her term. Needless to say, this has been an upsetting and disappointing development, but we’re pressing forward with the search for a new vice president and hope to quickly nominate a candidate for the Senate’s consideration.
“During this time of transition, my administration will continue its work on behalf of the American people with our usual determination and steadfast attention to our duties. Any questions regarding this matter should be addressed to Ms. Henderson, as I will have no further comment at this time. Thank you for your support and patience as we work to find our next vice president. In the meantime, God bless our troops stationed around the world, and as always, God bless America.”
Nick was painfully aware that his statement would create more questions than it would answer, but he couldn’t very well go public with the fact that she’d been spending nights with the Russian opposition leader without causing an even bigger distraction.
“That went well, sir,” Christina said when he finished.
“It’s going to set off yet another media storm, but whatever. It’s done.”
“I’ll stick to the script. Don’t worry.”
“I’m fully confident in your ability to play defense.” All at once, he recalled that she and Tommy were moving into Ninth Street that day. “Today’s your moving day. Go home.”
“There’ll be a ton of inquiries after your statement. I should stick around to deal with that.”
“Let Trevor handle them. Go get your family settled.”
“Thank you, Mr. President.”
“I hope you, Tommy and your children will be as happy at Ninth Street as we were.”
“I’m sure we will. It’s a palace compared to our cramped apartment. We so appreciate you making it available to us.”
“We’re glad to know it’ll be looked after by friends.”
“I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Take tomorrow off. We’ll be fine.”
“Oh, well… Are you sure?”
“You haven’t had a full day off since we started this new journey. Take as much time as it takes to settle your family.”
“Call if you need me. I can be here in ten minutes.”
“We’ll be fine.”
“I’m sorry about this, Nick,” she said softly. “You deserve so much better from the people around you.”
“This too shall pass.”
“For what it’s worth, I’m proud of the way you power through the nonsense and never take your eye off the ball of doing what’s right for the American people. It’s an honor and a privilege to be on this journey with you.”
“Thank you, friend. Having you and other close friends in my corner makes all the difference.”
Dr. Harry Flynn appeared in the open doorway to the Oval Office. “Am I interrupting?”
“I was just leaving,” Christina said with a smile for Nick. “He’s all yours.”
Harry came in and closed the door behind him.
“Are you making a house call, Dr. Flynn?” Nick asked when he saw that Harry had brought his medical bag.
“I am indeed.”
“What brought this on?”
“Some of your advisors thought you might be in need of a stress check.”
“My advisors did, huh?”
Harry set the bag on a sofa and withdrew a blood pressure cuff. “That’s right.”
Nick sat back against the Resolute Desk, resigned to getting this over with so his “advisors” could rest easily. “Did my wife send you?”
Harry affixed the cuff to Nick’s arm and placed a stethoscope in his ears. “I can’t reveal my sources.” He pumped up the cuff twice before he removed it. “One thirty over eighty. That’s a bit high, my friend.”
“It’s been that kind of day around here.”
“You want to talk about it?”
Nick huffed out a laugh. “Not even kinda.”
“How’re you managing the stress?”
“Since the shit only just hit the fan—again—I haven’t got a plan in place quite yet.”
“You need to get one. How about we go for a run after work?”
“You hate to run.”
“I’d take one for the team to get you out of here and into the fresh air for a few minutes.”
“That actually sounds really good but save us all from you becoming the patient and let me run with Brant and the guys on my detail.”
“I’m hurt by the insinuation that I can’t hang, but whatever you want, Mr. President. You’re the boss. Are you able to leave now?”
Nick took a fleeting look around the room that became more like a jail cell than an office on days like this. “Yeah, let’s go.”