Chapter 37. Lennix
LENNIX
“He has arrived, gliko mou .”
Iasonos’s words are unnecessary since I see the two bodyguards who always accompany Owen Cade seated in the main dining room. They’re already digging into the taramasalata and bread spread on the table in front of them.
“Thanks, Nos.” I smile warmly at the man who’s been my friend since I moved to DC seven years ago.
In search of good Greek, Kimba and I stumbled into this classic unassuming “hole in the wall” that ended up serving the best baklava I’ve ever tasted.
It was near closing that first night, and Kimba and I shut the place down.
It only took a few times for Nos to “adopt” us.
His restaurant, Trógo, is closed on Mondays, but we’ve conducted more than one covert meeting in his back room when he wasn’t open for business. Today might be the most important to date.
Iasonos pauses at the closed swinging door. “Just you today?” he asks.
“Yeah, Kimba’s at the office, but you know there’ll be hell to pay if I don’t take back some of your spanakopita.”
“I’ll have it ready,” he says, a pleased smile creasing cheeks. “For you, too?”
“Nah. Just a salad for me.” I roll my eyes at the obvious disapproval in his expression. “If it was up to you, I’d be popping out of all my clothes.”
“You need meat on the bones.”
“I’ve got plenty of meat on the bones,” I say, laughing and heading for the back room. “Salad, please.”
Owen sits at one of the few tables in the back room. It’s covered with a red-and-white-gingham tablecloth and topped with unlit candles. He’s on the phone but smiles when he sees me enter.
“Okay, Chuck,” he says. “I need to go, but I’ll see you back up on the Hill before the meeting.”
I take the seat across from him and reach for the carafe of water. “Hope you didn’t cut your call short on my account.”
“I did actually. I know how valuable your time is and didn’t want to keep you waiting.”
More considerate than most candidates. Plus column for him.
“Did you order already?” I sip my water. “Want something stronger than water?”
“No, I have a subcommittee meeting after this and need a clear head.”
“Makes sense.”
“I was glad to hear from Kimba.” He pours water for himself. “She sounded excited about working with me, and I was curious when she mentioned you wanted to talk before finalizing.”
“Yes, she’s excited.” I offer a genuine smile, something I reserve for genuine people. “ I’m excited. I know it may not seem that way, but I like all my cards on the table, so I wanted to talk with you before we go any further.”
“A woman after my own heart.” His smile is the real thing, too, and puts me at ease. Selling him to voters will be like handing out free candy apples at a county fair. He’s the perfect candidate waiting to happen.
“There are a few things we need to discuss before I sign on,” I say, tic-tac-toe-ing in the squares of the gingham tablecloth with my index finger. “Your father being the first.”
“And my brother being the second?”
I snap my gaze up from the table to meet his. Of course, he would have had Kimba and me vetted before approaching us.
“Either your research team has been busy,” I say wryly, “or Maxim told you himself.”
“Both,” he says, his voice quiet and eyes steady. “My team’s good, but they probably wouldn’t have dug up that one week in Amsterdam. Maxim told me that.”
“He did?”
“Yes, he didn’t tell me much, but I know it ended…badly.”
There could not have been a good ending to what we had. I’d thought it would end because of the truth Maxim told me from our first night together—that he would walk away no matter what. Ultimately it ended because of the truth he withheld.
“It was only a week.” I lower my lashes, protecting any secrets my eyes might share without permission. “But we didn’t part on the best of terms. I’d like to know what role you see him playing in your campaign.”
“Well, I’m hiring Hunter, Allen because I trust your judgment.” He angles a frank look from under a lock of blond hair that has defied styling. “But my brother is very popular and well respected.”
“Yeah. Handsome. Forward-thinking. Environmentally and philanthropically aware. A little too rich and privileged to trust completely, but then leaving your father gives him that bootstrap narrative. People like and trust him.”
“Sounds like you’ve given it some thought.”
“I give everyone some thought when they’re connected to one of my campaigns.”
“One of yours?” He lifts his brows. “So we’re good?”
“Not even close.” The comment has no real teeth, and we share a quick grin. “I still need to clarify how we’ll deploy your brother. I agree that he could be possibly your most valuable surrogate, but I don’t want to work with him.”
Owen’s speculation and my unbending will squeeze into the tight silence my comment leaves behind.
“Kimba or another staffer can accompany him when he goes on the trail,” I say. “We’ll assign someone who is not me to prep him for interviews and appearances.”
Iasonos comes in with my salad and Owen’s pa?dakia. Our conversation idles while Nos serves the food.
“Need anything else?” Nos asks.
“No,” I say with a smile. “I’m good.”
“So am I,” Owen says. “Looks delicious. Thank you so much.”
Ever solicitous and sensitive to the private nature of my business back here, Iasonos backs out quickly.
“So you want no contact with Maxim,” Owen says, picking up his fork and the thread of our conversation. “Got it.”
“I want to avoid any awkwardness, and a personal relationship, even former, could prove awkward, but I understand there may be times when we…encounter each other.”
“I get it,” Owen says around a steaming bite of food. “I’ll tell him.”
It feels cold, Owen delivering this message to Maxim, but I want as little contact with him as possible.
“The other issue may actually prove more difficult.” I heave a sigh and then dive in. “I don’t think your father should be seen as connected to the campaign at all.”
He looks at me for several seconds before laying down his fork.
“My father first mentioned the presidency to me when I was seven years old, Ms. Hunter. He will not take kindly to being completely cut out.”
“Please, call me Lennix.”
“Lennix,” he says pointedly, “my father is one of the most powerful men in the world. Having his support can only be a good thing.”
“Oh, really? When you’ve distanced yourself from him on half the votes his oil lobbyists pushed?”
“Well—”
“When your brother, whom we’ve just said will be one of your most important surrogates, has been estranged from him for nearly fifteen years based on deeply entrenched philosophical and political differences?”
“True, but—”
“When I have led several protests against him when Cade Energy infringed on restricted tribal property?”
“I know, but—”
“Him speaking for you makes the three of us look like hypocrites.” I lean forward and defy Emily Post to prop my elbows on the table. “And I haven’t been in politics long enough to be okay with looking like I don’t mean what I say.”
“He has connections we could use.”
“Some of them, if uncovered, could lead to unsavory places.” I hold up my hand when it looks like he’ll protest. “I said unsavory, not illegal. We’ve already started digging. Just because something isn’t illegal doesn’t mean the public will like it.”
“You’re saying I should cut my father out altogether?”
“I’m saying if your daddy is pulling any strings, I don’t wanna see them.”
“He’s not pulling my strings,” Owen says, the closest thing to anger I’ve seen showing in his eyes.
“Then this is a moot discussion.”
“Isn’t there some middle ground between him representing the campaign and not being involved at all?”
“I didn’t say he couldn’t be involved at all. I think aligning yourself with him publicly too closely will backfire. I said I don’t want to see the strings, not that he couldn’t work backstage.”
“Let’s get something straight, Ms. Hunter,” he says, pointedly ignoring my invitation to address me informally.
“My father is not a ventriloquist, and I’m no dummy.
You’re running my campaign, but never forget it is my campaign.
I understand the differences you have with my father and that you don’t want anything to do with my brother.
I won’t hesitate to put distance between me and either of them if necessary, but I won’t disavow them simply for being who they are. ”
His expression softens. “They’re family. We don’t always agree on every single thing, but we support each other and set aside differences when it matters most. I’d say me running for president qualifies as ‘most.’ I hope voters will relate to that.”
Perversely, his pushback solidifies that I do indeed want to work with Owen Cade. I drew my line in the sand, and he didn’t move his to satisfy me. If he can be that principled fighting for the causes I care about, I’ll count his victory as ours.
“Senator Cade, I think we can work it out. Let’s lay some ground rules and take exceptions case by case.” I nod and offer a pleasant smile. “How about dessert? The baklava is divine.”