The body. Cold. Impersonal. Thats how she should view it too. Thats how she had to view it. Excellent.
Have you managed to contact Maren?
Hes somewhere out in the desert. Ill have to try again.
We dont have much time.
I said Ill take care of it.
The media is crawling all over the hospital. Should we start it in motion?
No, let them speculate and then pop the story on them in the morning. We want them hungry enough to jump on any tidbit of information. She hung up.
Timwick? Kevin asked.
She nodded absently, her mind still on Bethesda.
I dont like the bastard. Do we still need him?
Be a little grateful, she said teasingly. Hes the one who discovered you.
He always treats me like a stupid ass.
Not in public?
He shook his head.
Well, maybe you wont have to see much of him. Ive been thinking you should give him an ambas-sadors post. Maybe in Zaire. After all, you are the president.
He laughed delightedly. Zaire.
She got up and slipped on her robe. Or Moscow. Its supposed to be very uncomfortable in Moscow.
But you promised him the vice presidency next term. Well have to name him as my running mate at the convention. He grimaced. Hes not going to give that up.
No, the vice presidency was the only carrot that had drawn Timwick into the plan. Hed been bitterly disappointed that Ben had not given him a cabinet post, and Lisa had never seen a more ambitious man. A hunger that intense could pose future problems for her, but she couldnt worry about Timwick now. Maybe we can think of a way of getting around it.
It would really be better if we can keep Chet Mobry as vice president. He hasnt caused us any trouble.
He could have caused us big trouble if we hadnt kept him on the road with nonstop goodwill missions. He never agreed with our policies. We could do the same with Timwick.
I guess so, but hes been Where are you going?
I have a little work to take care of. Go to sleep.
Is that why Timwick called you? He frowned. You never tell me what youre doing.
Because its only small, unimportant details. You take care of the big picture, I do the little stuff.
His frown disappeared. Youll come back when youre finished?
She nodded. Im only going into the next room to look at a dossier. I want to be prepared for your next meeting with Tony Blair.
He lay back down on the pillows. Hell be a piece of cake after the Japanese.
He was getting cocky. But it was better than the intimidation hed shown when hed first slipped into Bens place. Well see. She blew him a kiss. Go to sleep. Ill wake you when I come back.
She closed the door and walked to the desk across the room. It took her ten minutes to get through to Scott Maren and another five to explain the situation and its urgency.
Christ, Lisa, its not that easy. What excuse am I going to give for cutting my stay here short?
Youre clever. Youll come up with something. She added quietly, I need you, Scott.
Silence. It will be all right. Hang tough, Lisa. Ill call the hospital and tell them to hold off the au-topsy. Ill be there as soon as I can.
She hung up the phone. God, she was lucky to have Scott. He was going to be essential with damage control.
She turned on the computer, entered her pass-word, and opened the file on Eve Duncan. Every-thing was moving smoothly toward a salvage of the situation, and yet she was uneasy.
Eve Duncans image on the screen stared back at her. Kinky tousled curls, only a minimum of makeup, large brown eyes behind round wire-rimmed glasses. There was a world of character in that face, more than enough to make her fascinating-looking instead of just attractive. But the woman ignored the basic rules of power; she didnt use the assets she was given. She reminded Lisa of herself during her first few years of college, when shed thought brains and de-termination would do it all. God, that seemed a long time ago. Shed probably had the same intensity she saw in Eves expression. It hadnt taken her long to learn that intensity scared people. It was better to hide your passions behind a sweet smile.
Yet Eves background showed she was a survivor, and Lisa respected survivors. She was one herself, or she would never have been able to make it through these last years. Smiling sadly, she gently touched Eves image.
Sisters. Opposite sides of the same coin. Survivors.
Too bad.
