Chapter Twenty-Three #2
“Nice to hear about Candace finding her groove in Princeton.”
His comment was met with silence from his love, who had fallen asleep. Nick smiled as he nuzzled her hair, hoping she’d immediately go back to her regular shampoo. Funny the things that became necessary in a long relationship, he thought as he yawned.
What a fucking day…
He needed a new VP.
Just what he felt like dealing with.
Had Gretchen been sleeping with Ivanov? How had he been able to regularly visit the vice president’s official residence without setting off alarm bells in the intelligence community or among her staff members?
Who dropped the ball? Who else would he have to fire and replace?
What had Ivanov been trying to achieve by cozying up to the vice president?
Why in the world hadn’t Gretchen told him that she’d spent time with Ivanov?
What was he missing about all this, and what would it mean for his administration as the full story came to light?
For a long time after Sam fell asleep in his arms, Nick stared up at the ceiling, thinking this situation through from every angle, picking over the details, the conversations, the chain of events. No matter how hard he tried to put the pieces together, he couldn’t get any of it to make sense.
He worried things would get much worse before they got better.
That fear kept him awake the rest of the night.
The morning headlines were brutal.
Henderson Fired
Cappuano’s New VP Is Out
Don’t Let the Door Hit You
Breakdown at 1600
White House Short on Details About VP Departure
Why Was Henderson Fired?
Cappuano Statement Leaves More Questions Than Answers on VP
On social media, pundits were demanding the details behind Henderson’s ouster, and speculation was all over the place, feeding a narrative that something smelled bad at the White House.
Nick didn’t disagree with that conclusion. If he’d been on the outside looking in, he would’ve thought the same thing.
People were also talking about who might take her place and how fast that would happen.
Conservative speculation was especially harsh.
“Our unelected president has fumbled the most important decision he’s made yet by choosing a person who’d replace him in a worst-case scenario only to fire her months later.
How can we trust him to make other decisions on our behalf if he can’t even pick a vice president without it blowing up in his face? ”
He deserved all the criticism coming his way. Gretchen had done him, and the entire country, dirty, and he was determined to find out why, even if he didn’t like the answer.
At five thirty, he headed for the shower to get ready for what promised to be another brutal day.
He’d forgotten to ask Sam if she’d requested the time off to go on the Greenland trip with him.
He couldn’t wait to get to the NATO meeting to answer questions about the situation with his VP and to face off with world leaders who’d want answers.
He was startled out of his thoughts when Sam stepped into the shower behind him and wrapped her arms around him. “Where’d you come from?”
“I was looking for you. Did you sleep at all?”
“Not really.”
“Nick… You can’t make yourself sick over this. It’s simply not worth it.”
“I tell myself that, but alas… Sleep proves elusive at the best of times.”
“Knowing she put you in this position makes me want to find my rustiest steak knife.”
Chuckling, he turned to face her. “My first lady wouldn’t look good in prison orange.”
“But she’d feel pretty good about getting rid of that woman, once and for all.”
“Put your claws away. We’ll deal with her by the book.”
“I’m going to interview her today about Ivanov.”
“Is that so?”
“Yep. She’s my first stop before court.”
“Ugh, that’s right. You’re testifying today.”
“Yeah.”
“How are you feeling about that?”
“Ready to get it over with.”
“I wish I could be there with you.”
“That’d be a three-ring circus.”
“I know, but I still wish I could go.”
“You’ll be there in spirit. Where will I find Gretchen?”
“Since I ordered her out of the Naval Observatory, probably back at wherever she lived before she was VP.”
“I’ll figure out where that is.”
“Will you be able to remain professional with her?”
“I’ll do my very best to keep my steak knife sheathed.”
“That’s my girl.” He kissed her and held her for another minute, soaking in the comfort she provided before another hellacious day began. “In case I forget to tell you, this was the highlight of my day.”
“Mine, too. Do me a favor today?”
“If I can.”
“Please take good care of my husband during this stressful time. He’s the whole world to me, and I worry about him.”
“I’ll be okay. I promise.”
“You’d better be. Remember that all this is temporary, and as big as it is in the moment, we’ve got a whole life to live after this place.”
“You have no idea how much I needed to hear that right now. Thank you for the reminder.”
“Any time you need to hear it, just let me know.”
“Did you get a chance to ask about going to Greenland with me this week?”
“I didn’t, and I’m not sure this is the time to ask for leave with Joe and Jeannie both out and Jake working double time to cover for them. Jake told me he’s been diagnosed with prostate cancer on top of everything else.”
“Oh no. I’m sorry to hear that.”
“It scared the hell out of me when he told me, and then I barely had time to even think about it with everything else that happened yesterday. So yeah, I don’t think I can go, as much as I’d like to.”
“I understand. We’ll try again next time.”
“I’ve always wanted to go to Greenland.”
“Really?”
“Nah, but Greenland with you would be fun.”
“We’ll get there. Right now, I need to head to my security briefing. I’ll try to be back to see the kids before they leave for school.” He kissed her once more. “Try to have a good day.”
“You do the same.”
“I love you.”
“I love you more, and I’ve already won this fight.”
“Take good care of my wife today. She’s the sun, the moon and the whole universe.”
“You just had to one-up me.”
Grinning, he said, “I do what I can for my person.” After stealing one more kiss, he got out of the shower and went to get dressed.