Chapter Twenty-Nine
Memphis had insisted they not stop for the night so as not to drag out the suspense any longer than necessary. Jesse insisted on frequent breaks so she could get out and move around.
“Are you stalling because you’re afraid to deal with what you might find there?” she asked as he walked her around inside a giant Circle K truck stop. They were three hours from Lewisburg.
“I’m not stalling. I’m making sure you don’t have a setback by sitting still for too long.”
“I’m fine. Are you?”
Normally, Jesse would come up with some sort of bullshit to avoid an uncomfortable conversation. But she didn’t let him get away with that crap, and for some reason that defied logic, he didn’t want to disappoint her. “Define ‘fine.’”
“I can’t begin to know what this must be like for you—wanting to be hopeful, but afraid to open that door, while bracing for a million possible outcomes.”
“That about sums it up.”
“It’s torturous, and it makes me hurt for you.”
“Don’t hurt for me. You’ve had enough pain to last awhile.”
“Your pain is my pain.” She looked up at him under the unforgiving glare of fluorescent lights.
Weeks after her devastating injury, she was still far too pale for his liking and had shadows under her eyes that hadn’t been there before she was shot.
Even so, she was still the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. “That’s how this works.”
Right there in the middle of the store, he hugged her, closing his eyes as he took comfort from her steady presence, filled with gratitude to have her on this journey with him. “Thanks for not dying. I’m not sure I would’ve survived it.”
“You’ve survived worse.”
“I’m not sure that I have.”
“Jesse… You’re making my heart all fluttery with what you’re not saying.”
“That you’re the most important person in my life, and that won’t change no matter what we learn in Kentucky or anywhere else?”
“Yeah.” She sighed as she rested her head on his chest. “That.”
“You can’t be surprised to hear that.”
“Before I nearly died, I’d given up on ever having more of you than you were willing to give me.”
“I’m sorry that it took such a dramatic event to bring things into focus for me.
If I had to guess at my own twisted psychology, I was holding you at arm’s length, so I’d never have to lose you.
And then when I almost did, the arm’s-length thing seemed stupid and pointless.
All I wanted was to hold you closer so you could never get away. ”
“That’s fine with me, but what’ll we do when we go back to work?” Since he was technically her boss, their relationship would be frowned upon by the higher-ups.
“I’m not going to worry about that now,” he said.
“We’ll need to worry about it at some point.”
“Not today. Let’s take another lap and then get back on the road.”
He kept an arm around her as they walked around the huge complex before buying some pretzels, cookies and water for the car. Memphis was due for medication that she needed to take with food.
Her movements getting back into the SUV were slow and careful, indicating she wasn’t as tough as she pretended to be for his sake.
As he held the door and waited for her to get settled, he said, “Will you tell me if you need a longer break?”
“You’ll be the first to know.”
“Please don’t muscle through because you don’t want me to have to wait any longer. I’ve already waited forever. Another day or a few hours won’t matter.”
“It does matter. You shouldn’t have to wait an extra second to find out if this woman is your Jordan.”
Moved by her fierce support, he smiled and closed the door. When they were back on the road, he glanced over at her. “In case you were wondering, I’m fully aware that if it’s her, she won’t be my Jordan anymore. She has a whole other life now.”
“That doesn’t mean the one she was taken from won’t matter to her.”
“She probably won’t remember me.”
“Don’t be so sure. She was seven the last time she saw you. My earliest memories are from when I was four. I vividly remember a day at a lake with my family and can recall specific details that aren’t in the photos. What’s your earliest memory?”
Jesse grimaced. He hated that question because the answer was so painful. “I remember Jordan and me being pulled out of our mother’s arms when she was arrested. We never saw her again. My grandparents picked us up at the police station, took us home, and that was that.”
Her hand covered the one he rested on his leg. “I’m sorry you remember that so clearly.”
“Yeah, it’s one of those memories you wish you could wipe off the hard drive.”
“While Jordan may not remember that day or others that led up to it, I have no doubt she’ll remember you, the big brother who was always there for her, protecting her and making sure none of the bad stuff touched her.”
“I tried.”
“I have no doubt you did everything you possibly could for her and that she’ll remember you, no matter what happened after she was taken.”
“And if it’s not her?”
“We’ll keep looking for as long as it takes until we find her or learn what became of her. We’ll never give up the search.”
“We won’t, will we?” he asked, smiling at her.
“You’re not alone in this anymore.”
He turned his hand up to take hold of hers. “You have no idea how much relief there is in knowing that.”
“Two U.S. Marshals are always better than one.”
“Isn’t that the truth.” He brought her hand to his lips and placed a kiss on the back of it. “Thank you.”
“No thanks needed. This quest is mine now, too.”
Jesse, who’d spent most of his life pushing people away so he’d never again have to experience losing someone he loved, couldn’t believe how Memphis had taken him over, body and soul. And he wouldn’t have had it any other way.
In a few hours, he’d know whether he’d found his sister, and if this was a false alarm, he’d be okay because Memphis would be there to make it so.
Nick’s communications director, Trevor Donnelly, came into the Oval Office. Ever since Trevor had cut off his mop of curly hair in favor of a much shorter style, Nick couldn’t get over how different he looked.
“The media has caught wind of Henderson being transported by the FBI to their headquarters building,” Trevor told him and Terry. “The questions, as you can imagine, are intense and accusatory. The ‘what did President Cappuano know and when did he know it?’ variety.”
“Fantastic.”
“I think we need to put you in the room to get out in front of it.”
“That’s not happening,” Terry said. “We’ll let the investigation answer all the questions.”
“All due respect, Terry,” Trevor said, “by the time that happens, we may no longer have a presidency to defend. The former vice president was hanging out with a Russian at her official residence and kept it a secret. The people want answers, and frankly, they deserve them.”
“He’s right,” Nick said. “Get Sally Monroe and Acting AG Conrad in here to brief me on the investigation. After that, I’ll appear before the press.”
“They’re going to beat the shit out of you, sir,” Trevor said.
“Maybe they should. This was going on right under my nose, and I had no clue. This is on me as much as it’s on her.”
“Please, for the love of God and all that is holy, do not say that,” Terry said.
“Relax,” Nick said, smiling at Terry’s horrified expression.
“I won’t take the blame. I’ll simply present the facts as we know them and say we’re moving on while Gretchen deals with the consequences of her choices.
I had a productive call with President Petrov today, and he understands that Gretchen Henderson was the one meeting with Ivanov, not me or any other member of my administration. ”
“What will you say when you’re asked if you supported Ivanov’s mission?”
“I’ll say I’m a firm proponent of human rights and agreed with the democratic reforms he called for, but I did not and would not participate in calls for regime change in my official capacity.”
“That’s pretty good,” Trevor said.
“Gee, thanks,” Nick said. “Glad it meets with your approval.”
“Mr. President,” Trevor said haltingly, “please tell me you understand that even though you knew nothing about what Gretchen Henderson was doing or who she was doing it with, it’ll still reflect on you.”
Feeling worn out, Nick sat behind the Resolute Desk. “I get it. I’ll also ask Teresa to brief them on how it was possible Gretchen’s contact with Ivanov wasn’t detected sooner.”
“All right, then,” Trevor said. “But you need to be ready for other pointed questions about your youth, inexperience, judgment, etc.”
“In other words, all the usual stuff.”
“Yes, but more so because of what the former VP did,” Trevor said.
“There’s no getting around the fact that she’s hurt us badly.
Stenhouse is calling for impeachment since Gretchen and Ivanov led right back to terrorism that resulted in four dead Americans.
” Nick wasn’t surprised to hear the minority leader was calling for his impeachment.
“The sooner we can announce a new VP, the better.”
“I’ve made an offer.”
“To whom, sir?” Trevor asked.
“Graham O’Connor.”
Trevor didn’t immediately react as he seemed to think through the choice from all angles. “That’s a very good idea,” he finally said.
“I’m glad you approve.”
“I definitely approve, and it’ll solve a lot of our most pressing problems.”
“Don’t get too excited yet,” Nick said. “He has to present the idea to Mrs. O’Connor, who’s expected to be much less enthusiastic about it than he is. She’s very much enjoying their retirement.”
“It’s only for a couple of years.”
“When you’re eighty, a couple of years can be all you have left,” Terry said. “I anticipate that’ll be a concern to my mom.”
Nick hoped Graham could persuade Laine to give it a whirl, because there was no one else he wanted by his side for the remainder of his term.