something. You’re going to set up a meeting with him in Washington.”
She was shaking her head.
“Tomorrow. At noon. It’ll be broad daylight and you’ll meet him somewhere in public where you’ll be safe, where he won’t dare do anything to you.”
“And then what?” she asked defiantly.
“You’ll talk with him, nothing more. We’ll be nearby listening to everything that’s said.”
She looked to Stephanie, her eyes wild.
“Your husband hurt this country very badly, Mrs. O’Haire,” Stephanie said. “But what he did was nothing compared to what a man 1 such as Harman could do if he isn’t stopped. It’s time now to put an end to it, but we need your help.”
“I don’t know how to do this,” the O’Haire woman cried in anguish.
“I don’t know what to say.”
“I’ll be listening with you, I’ll help you,” McAllister said gently. “What if he doesn’t want to meet with me?”
“He will,” McAllister said. “He’s going to ask you if we’ve been here, and I want you to tell him that we were, this afternoon, and that we were making a lot of wild accusations.”
“He’s going to ask me what you said, I mean exactly… “Yes, he will, and that’s why you’re going to have to meet with him in Washington, you can’t discuss this on the telephone.”
“What if he still refuses?”
McAllister glanced at Stephanie. “Tell him that we know about someone in the White House, and that we have the proof.”
“No,” Kathleen O’Haire said, shaking her head again. “I can’t do this.”
“You must,” Stephanie said. “No, damnit.
McAllister grabbed her arms and pulled her to her feet. “Listen to me, goddamnit. What do you think will happen to you if we turn around and walk out of here now? You don’t have to answer, I’ll tell you. Donald Harman telephoned you this afternoon, he wants to talk to you. He won’t let you off the hook. If he thinks that you know something, if he even suspects you might be lying to him, he’ll send someone here to kill you.”
“I’ll call the police,” she cried, hiccuping.“And tell them what?” McAllister said savagely. “That you think one of the President’s advisers is going to kill you?”
She was trying to pull away from McAllister’s grasp, but he wouldn’t let her go. “I’m sorry that you’re involved in this,” he said. “I wish it were different, but it’s not.”
“I don’t want to get hurt,” she said.
“Neither do we,” Stephanie replied. “We’ll do our best, it’s all we can offer you.”
Kathleen O’Haire sagged, and McAllister let her go. She looked at them both. “When do you want me to call him?” she asked in a small voice.
“Now,” McAllister said, hiding the triumph from his voice. “He’ll probably suggest a meeting place, but no matter what it is, you’ll refuse.”
“Where then?”
McAllister glanced at Stephanie, she knew Washington better than he did. “McMillan Park,” she said. “It’s on the south side of the reservoir, over by Howard University. There are places we can hide there, and yet it’s fairly open. Doug and I used to go there in the summer.”
“Will there be people around at this time of the year?”
“Not many, but there’ll be some.”
“McMillan Park it is,” McAllister said. He went to the telephone and dialed the White House number. As soon as it began to ring he held out the phone to the O’Haire woman. “Ask for extension 273,” he said. She hesitated for just a moment longer, but then took the phone and held it close enough to her ear so that she could hear, and yet far enough away so that McAllister could also listen in, their heads close together.
“The White House,” a woman operator answered pleasantly. Kathleen O’Haire looked up at McAllister. “Extension 273.”
“One moment, please.”
It was nearly seven o’clock here, which made it nearly ten on the East Coast. The extension rang once, there was a slight click on theline, and then it began ringing again in a different tone. The call was probably being automatically forwarded to wherever Harman happened to be at that moment. Most likely at home.
“Hello,” Donald Harman answered.
Kathleen O’Haire froze for just a moment, and McAllister had to prod her to get her to speak.
“Hello,” she said. “This is Kathleen O’Haire. I was asked to call this number.”
“Just a minute,” Harman said, and the line went dead for a second, 1 before he came back on. “Thanks for calling, Mrs. O’Haire, are you all right?”
“No,” she said. “I’m not all right.”
“What is it?” Harman asked, and McAllister could hear the instant caution in the man’s voice. “Has something happened out there? Are you calling from California?”
“Yes,” she said. “But I had some visitors this afternoon. I don’t know what to do. You said I was in danger…
“Take it easy, Mrs. O’Haire, everything will be fine. You say you had visitors this afternoon. Who were they?”
“McAllister and some woman.”
Harman hesitated for a beat. “I see,” he said. “Where are they now?”
“Gone.”
“They didn’t hurt you?”
“No, but… you and I… we have to meet,” Kathleen O’Haire said, and she paused. McAllister motioned for her to continue. “They know about you… or about someone in the White House,” she said.
“They know what, Mrs. O’Haire?” Harman asked smoothly. “I don’t know,” she said convincingly. “They asked about Jim, and then your call came..
“Were they in the house when I telephoned you?” Harman asked. McAllister shook his head.
“No, but they said they knew about the White House connection.”
“They don’t know that I telephoned you?”
Again McAllister shook his head. “No, they were already gone.”
“Did they say where they were going?”
“No, but I’m frightened. Jim told me to be… careful.”
“And he was correct, Mrs. O’Haire. You are in danger now. I want you to stay where you are, I’ll send someone out to pick you up.”
“No,” Kathleen O’Haire blurted. “I’m coming to Washington.”
“All right. I’ll arrange a hotel for you. What flight will you be coming in on?”
McAllister put his hand over the mouthpiece. “You’re flying to New York tonight, and you’ll be taking the train down to Washington in the morning,” he whispered. He took his hand away and she repeated what he’d told her.
“I can have someone meet you then.”
“No,” Kathleen O’Haire said. “I’m frightened. I don’t know what’s going to happen. I’ll meet you at McMillan Park. Do you know where it is?” Harman hesitated for a long second or two. “Are you alone now, Mrs. O’Haire?”
“Yes,” she said. “At noon tomorrow. Do you know where it is?”
“Yes, I do.”
“They said they’ve got proof. I just can’t say any more on this line.”
“I understand,” Harman said. “Are you certain I can’t send someone out there for you? You would certainly be much safer…
“No,” Kathleen O’Haire said. “I’ll see you at noon.” McAllister broke the connection, then took the phone from her hand and replaced it on the cradle. He let out a sigh of relief.
“How’d he sound?” Stephanie asked.
“Frightened,” McAllister said. He squeezed Kathleen O’Haire’s arm. “You did very well. Now you’d better pack
