would destroy the whole Sultanate of Sherhaben if the hostages were not released. So his character had changed. His new character would have signed the medical interrogation order. And then when he refused to sign, he gave me a look, I can't describe it, but it was almost as if he were telling me to let it happen.'
The Oracle was fully alive now. He spoke sharply. 'All that doesn't matter. What matters is that you save your ass. If Kennedy doesn't get reelected, you may spend years in jail. And even if Kennedy gets reelected, there may be some danger.'
'Kennedy will win the election,' Christian said. 'And after that, I'll be OK.' He paused for a moment. 'I know him.'
'You know the old Kennedy,' the Oracle said. Then as if he had lost interest he said, 'And how about my birthday party? I'm a hundred years old and nobody gives a shit.'
Christian laughed. 'I do. Don't worry. After the election you'll have a birthday party in the White House Rose Garden. A birthday party for a king.'
The Oracle smiled with pleasure, then said slyly, 'And your Francis
Kennedy will be the king. You do know, don't you, that if he is reelected and carries his congressional candidates with him, he will in effect be a dictator?'
'That's highly unlikely,' Christian Klee said. 'There has never been a dictator in this country. We have safeguards too many safeguards, I think sometimes.'
'Ah,' the Oracle said, 'this is a young country yet. We have time. And the Devil takes many seductive forms.'
They were silent for a long time, and then Christian rose to take his leave. They always touched hands when they parted; the Oracle was too fragile for a real handshake.
'Be careful,' the Oracle said. 'When a man rises to absolute power, he usually gets rid of those closest to him, those who know his secrets.'
CHAPTER
22
A FEDERAL JUDGE set Henry Tibbot and Adam Gresse free.
The government did not contest that the arrest had been illegal. The government did not contest that there had been no warrants. Gresse and Tibbot's defense team had exploited every legal loophole.
The people of America were enraged. They blamed the Kennedy administration, they cursed the judicial system. Mobs gathered in the streets of the great cities calling for the death of Gresse and Tibbot.
Vigilante groups formed to carry out the justice of the people.
Gresse and Tibbot fled to a hiding place in South America and disappeared into a sanctuary financed by their wealthy parents.
Two months before the presidential election, polls showed that Francis Kennedy's margin of victory would not be enough to carry his congressional candidates into office.
There were more problems: a scandal involving Eugene Dazzy's mistress; the lingering charges that Attorney General Christian Klee had deliberately permitted the explosion of the atom bomb; the scandal of Canoo and Klee using the funds of the office of the military adviser to beef up the Secret Service.
And perhaps Francis Kennedy himself went too far. America was not ready for his brand of socialism. It was not ready to reject the corporate structure of America. The people of America did not want to be equal, they wanted to be rich. Nearly all the states had their own lottery with prizes running high up into the millions. More people bought lottery tickets than voted in the national elections.
The power of the congressmen and senators already in office was also overwhelming. They had their staffs paid for by the government. They had the vast sums of money contributed by the corporate structure, which they used to dominate TV with brilliantly executed ads. By holding government office they could appear on special political programs on TV and in the newspapers, increasing their name recognition factor.
With the delicate precision of a Renaissance poisoner, Lawrence Salentine had organized the overall campaign against Kennedy so brilliantly that he was now the leader of the Socrates Club group.
President Kennedy studied his staff report, which predicted that his handpicked candidates for Congress would probably not be elected. The thought that he might again be an impotent leader had a physical effect on him. He felt ill. And beyond that he felt a strange rage that was full of a repugnant malice. He was ashamed of this emotion and concentrated on the classified operational plans from Christian Klee.
He noted that Christian had channeled this report directly to the President. And it was just as well. The information was horrifying, but even more extraordinary was Klee's plan on how to handle the problem.
There would be a sacrifice of moral principle involved, Kennedy thought, and then quite consciously knowing the cost, he scribbled his consent on the memos.
On the third day of September, Christian Klee went to the office of the Vice President unannounced. As an extra precaution, he gave special instructions to Helen Du Pray's Secret Service detail chief before he presented himself to Du Pray's secretary and said his business was urgent.
The Vice President was astonished to see him; it was against all protocol that he should visit her without advance warning or even permission. For a moment he was afraid she might take offense, but she was too intelligent to do so. She knew immediately that Christian Klee would breach protocol only for the most serious problem. In fact, what she felt was apprehension. What new terrible thing could have happened now after the past months?
Klee sensed this uneasiness immediately. 'There's nothing to be worried about,' he said. 'It's just that we have a security problem involving the President. As part of our coverage, we have sealed off your office. It would be best that you not answer the phone but deal with your immediate staff. I will remain with you the entire day, personally.'
Du Pray understood immediately that no matter what happened, she was not to take command of the country and that was why Klee was there. 'If the President has a security problem, why are you with me?' she said. But without waiting for an answer from Klee, she said, 'I will have to check this with the President, personally.'
'He is appearing at a political luncheon in New York,' Klee said.
'I know that,' she said.
Klee looked at his watch. 'The President will be calling you in about one half hour,' he said.
When the call came, Klee watched Helen Du Pray's face. She seemed to show no astonishment; only twice she asked questions. Good, Klee thought, she would be OK, he didn't have to worry about her. Then she did something that aroused Christian's admiration; he didn't think she had it in her-vice presidents were noted for their timidity. She asked Kennedy if she could speak to Eugene Dazzy, the President's chief of staff. When Dazzy came on the phone, she made a simple query about their work schedule for the next week. Then she hung up. She had been checking to see if the person on the phone had really been Kennedy, despite the fact that she recognized his voice. Of the questions she had asked, only Dazzy would recognize the reference. She was making sure that there was no voice impersonation.
She addressed Klee icily; she knew something was fishy, Klee thought. She said, 'The President has informed me that you will be using my office as a command post, that I will be under your instruction. I find this extraordinary. Perhaps you will give me an explanation.'
'I apologize for all this,' Klee said. 'If I could have some coffee, I'll give you a full briefing. You will know as much as the President about this matter.' Which was true but a little devious. She would not know as much as Klee.
Helen Du Pray was studying him very intently. She didn't trust him, Klee knew. But women didn't understand power, they didn't understand the stark efficiency of violence. He gathered up all his energy to convince her of his sincerity. When he was through almost an hour later, she seemed won over. She was a very beautiful woman and intelligent, Christian thought. Too bad that she would never become the President of the United States.
On this glorious summer day, President Francis Kennedy was to speak at a political luncheon held in New
