Now, he faced a no-win situation. Contradicting the president in public would be considered an unforgivable offense, capable of destroying his political future.
Publicly supporting Rembrandt for the post would lock him to the radical judge and tarnish his Boy Scout image. He didn’t have much choice in the situation. Richard realized the latter was the least of the two evils.
Warner’s machinations were brilliant, Richard thought. He’d set him up to take the fall if Rembrandt was rejected as the next Supreme Court Justice, and if he was approved, then Warner got his way. A win win for President Lane.
Richard set down his fork, regained his composure, and began. “Carl Rembrandt is a brilliant judge with a distinguished legal history.”
SEVENTY-SEVEN
Carolyn stormed into the Oval Office.
Warner turned as she entered. “I’m in a meeting. Check with one of the secretaries to see when I’m free next.”
“You’re free now.” Carolyn looked pointedly at the men, two senators, the Speaker of the House, and thee Cabinet members, who sat with Warner. She refused to play by Warner’s rules, even if it meant suffering his humiliation from time to time. “Or we can air your dirty laundry in front of them?” She waved the sheet of paper she held. “Your choice.”
Warner nodded toward the door and the meeting dispersed.
Carolyn watched them exit. When she turned back to Warner, his face was crimson.
He stood, walked to his bar, poured himself a double Jack Daniels, and belted it down.
Not his first for the day, Carolyn was sure.
“Don’t you ever pull a stunt like that again.” He set his glass down, and moved toward her. “I won’t tolerate it.”
“And I won’t tolerate this.” She threw the paper at him. “How the hell did you get my E-mail address and my password?”
He laughed. “Don’t you mean, who did this? And why?”
Carolyn shook her head. “That’s your problem, Warner, you’ve always underestimated me. I know who did this. And I know why. I want to know how?” She knew she’d been betrayed. But she wasn’t sure by whom. All of the arrows pointed to Dailey, but she struggled to believe it was true. She hoped Warner’s ego would force him to gloat, providing her with the answer.
“All you need to know is that you’ve been set up, and set up well. You’ll march to my tune now, or I’ll see you arrested and claim you’re mentally unfit. Edmund’s got several doctors in his back pocket, all of whom are ready to attest to your illness. The deeds you’ve set in motion are horrendous.” Warner shook his head. “And the smoking gun is so hot, it appears to have been used in a shoot out.”
“So, Mark came up with this on his own?” She played her hand.
“Dailey couldn’t come up with shit on his own. He had help.”
“You son of a bitch.” Her worst fears were contained. Now, she knew she couldn’t give Jack away by mentioning Adam Miles’s files. It would be like issuing his death sentence.
“I like to think so,” Warner smirked. “Some of your crimes may be forgivable, the heat of a political battle and all that, but when you went after Young’s boy, well, no one will ever forgive an attack on a child. Especially when it’s ordered by a woman who claims to champion children’s causes.”
He’d hurt a child. He’d almost killed Richard’s son. And he’d done it in her name. Carolyn felt something snap in her mind. She remembered screaming. “You bastard, you bastard…”
And then she flew at him, unable to control her rage.
Warner wiped at the blood that trickled down his cheek. “You bitch! You fucking bitch! You scratched me.”
At Warner’s outburst, a Secret Service agent ran through the door. He grabbed Carolyn and held her away from Warner.
She took a few deep breaths and turned to the agent. “You can let go of me.” She could see sympathy in the embarrassed faces of the agents, and it made her feel worse.
The agent immediately released her.
Carolyn smoothed her fingers over her hair, then straightened her clothing.
“Don’t you ever touch me again,” Warner hissed, his nose four inches from hers. An agent handed the president a tissue. Warner stepped back, and pressed it against the scratch. “She is not allowed past the outer office. Do you understand me?”
“But she’s-”
“I don’t give a fuck who she is. She isn’t allowed in the Oval Office again. Am I clear?”
“Yes, sir.”
Tears stung Carolyn’s eyes, but she refused to let them fall. Head held high, she spun on her heel and left the Oval Office with all the dignity she could muster.
SEVENTY-EIGHT
Carolyn shivered as she sat quietly in a private waiting room of the hospital. She wished she’d worn a sweater. Why, she wondered, did hospitals always feel so drafty and cold?
Secret Service agents stood outside the door, giving her privacy, but their thoughtful consideration felt more like solitary confinement. Carolyn clasped her hands in her lap. There was nothing to do but wait.
She hated being there, but protocol demanded her attendance as soon as she’d been notified, especially since Warner was delayed on Air Force One.
An hour and a half later, Warner sauntered into the room. A Secret Service agent shut the door to the waiting room, intensifying the trapped feeling that threatened to overwhelm her. A current of animosity surged between them.
“Worried about the love of your life?” Warner asked as he sat across from her.
“He’s
“But he was your lover.” Anger flecked with pain sparked from his eyes.
Carolyn froze. “Warner-” What could she say? she wondered. Nothing, she finally realized. Absolutely nothing. The truth she’d always feared had come back to haunt her. She slumped in her seat, the weight she’d been carrying for so many years finally crushing her.
Warner leaned back on the couch and crossed his arms over his chest. “Come off it, Carolyn. Edmund told me everything. The affair, his baby – you remember – the reason you had the abortion. All of it.” he ground out through an obvious wall of hurt.
Now, she understood his hatred, his reason for striking out so cruelly time and again. She stared at her hands. “When did he tell you?”
“It doesn’t matter,” Warner said, shrugging. “I don’t give a damn, anyway. You’ve served your purpose.”
The emotion in his voice betrayed his words. giving evidence of how much he really did care, of how much these facts had destroyed him. That realization hit her like a clenched fist to the temple. Her head throbbed violently. “It was before I knew you.” Why was she bothering to defend herself? Nothing she could say or do would repair the chasm between them.
“Not according to Edmund,” Warner laughed. “Of course, that bastard’s about to burn in hell with the rest of them. He served his purpose as well. His time was up.” He leaned toward her. “This is a lesson you should take to heart Carolyn. No one tries to control me.”
