'Good point,' he said.
'Why don't we tell them that the president asked you to return?' she said.
'Because he didn't,' Hood said.
'You two had a private meeting when you came back from New York,' she said.
'He won't deny asking you to return. It shows loyalty on his part. Everyone benefits.'
'But it isn't true,' Hood said.
'Then let's just say this,' Ann said.
'After meeting with the president, you decided to reconsider your resignation.
That's true.'
'You really want to get the president in there.'
'Whenever I can,' Ann said.
'It gives us weight.'
'Weight?' Hood said.
'You mean suction.'
'Excuse me?'
'Nick Grille said that the word-de-jour is suction.'
'Actually, that's not quite right,' Ann informed him.
'Weight is when someone has credibility. Suction is when they have considerable influence. There's a difference.'
'I see,' Hood said. They smiled at each other. Hood looked away.
'I'd better get to work,' he said.
'There's a lot of catching up to do.'
'I'm sure,' Ann said.
'I'll e-mail you a copy of the press release before it goes out.'
'Thanks again,' Hood said.
'For everything.'
'Sure.' Ann hesitated. She looked at Hood for a long moment more and then left.
Hood turned to the computer monitor on his right. He did not want to watch Ann go. Ann Farris was a beautiful, intelligent, very sexual woman. For the five years they had known each other, they had flirted, she more openly than he. Now that Hood was going to be single, he felt uneasy about continuing the game. There was no longer someone between them. Flirting no longer felt like a game.
But Hood did not have time to think about that now.
There was a lot to do. He had to review the daily briefings that had gone to Mike Rodgers during the past week, which included intelligence data collected from around the world as well as ongoing covert operations.
He also had to look at reports from the rest of the staff and have a glance at the schedule for the upcoming week before he went to see the First Lady. He noticed that Rodgers was going to be interviewing the final candidates to replace Martha Mackall, the political liaison who had been assassinated in Spain, as well as candidates for the new post of economic adviser. With more and more nations linked together financially--'Siamese megatuplets' was how Lowell Coffey had put it--politics was becoming a troublesome sideshow to the force that really drove the world.
Hood decided to let Mike make those hires. Not only had he started the process, but Hood was going to be too busy with everything else. But with all that was going on, one thing remained true.
Paul Hood loved this work, this place.
It was good to be back.
Baku, Azerbaijan Monday, 4:00 p.m.
Azerbaijan is a nation in flux.
Because of political conflict in the Nagorno-Karabakh region, twenty percent of the country--mostly in the southwest, along the borders with Armenia and Iran-are occupied by rebel forces. Though a cease-fire has been observed since 1994, firefights occur with some regularity. Privately, diplomats fear that the selfproclaimed Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh will become the next Kosovo. Protests, often violent, erupt in Baku and other cities without warning. Some of them pertain to politics, others to general unrest. Since the breakup of the Soviet Union, there has been an extreme shortage of staples such as medical supplies, produce, and new technology. Cash--preferably U.S. dollars--is the only form of exchange recognized in most areas of the country, including the capital.
The United States has managed to openly support the legitimate government of Azerbaijan without alienating the powerful insurgent forces. Loans have been granted to Baku, while goods have been sold directly to 'the people'--primarily the rebels. In the event of widespread revolt, the United States wants to have open lines of communication on both sides.
Maintaining that balance is the primary task of the small American embassy. Since March 1993, the fifteen employees and ten marine guards have operated from a small stone building at 83 Azadlig Prospect. In the back of that building, in a windowless, wood-paneled room, is the Department of News Services. Unlike the small press department, which issues news releases and arranges for interviews and photo ops with U.S. congressmen, senators, and other government leaders, officially the job of the DNS is to collect news clippings from around Russia
