Olivia shooed the agents outside and told them they’d be finished in a half-hour, but they insisted on staying inside.
“If you must stay, just keep yourself busy with all those Vogue magazines,” Olivia said.
The two men sneered at her as they took up their positions in the corner of the room. Olivia closed her eyes and leaned back, enjoying the massage from the leather chair enveloping her.
“Just sit back and relax,” the woman said.
“Isn’t this the best?” Penny asked.
“Absolutely,” Olivia said.
That was the last thing she said before she heard two muffled gunshots. She sat up abruptly just in time to feel a needle plunge into her neck.
Seconds later, everything went dark.
CHAPTER 18
AS SOON AS President Young’s afternoon meeting concluded, he exited the conference room with a wide grin on his face. The reports from the new economic policies he’d been touting on the campaign trail returned with glowing numbers. Even his most ardent critics couldn’t twist the results into something negative. But that wasn’t the only reason he was happy.
“Where’s Olivia?” he asked Doug while walking down the hallway.
“She went out to get her nails done,” he said. “She’ll be back soon. But there’s an urgent matter to discuss.”
“Don’t you ruin my day.”
“Sir, I think you better sit down to read this.”
Young stopped. “What is it, Doug?”
“There’s a story The New York Times just released on their website,” Doug said as he handed Young a tablet. “I thought you should take a look at this.”
Young read the headline aloud. "'Source: White House puts on a brave face despite terror threats over Fourth gala.' Who the hell is saying stuff like this to the press?"
Doug shrugged. “I don’t know, sir.”
“Is this even true?”
Doug shook his head. “I haven’t heard anyone talking about this. So, if anyone is afraid of something happening, they’re not saying it out loud, which makes me wonder about the veracity of this article.”
Young scanned the article before handing the device back to Doug. “Thanks for bringing this to my attention.”
“Do you want me to see if I can find out who did this?”
“No, I think I know the culprit. I’m going to take care of this myself.”
Young walked briskly back to his office and slammed the door shut behind him. He picked up his phone and dialed J.D. Blunt. Seconds later, the Phoenix Foundation director answered.
“Mr. President, it’s good to hear from you. What can I help you with this afternoon?”
“Listen, J.D., don’t try to bullshit me. Did you plant that story in The Times about the Fourth of July celebration?”
“First of all, I would never do anything to undermine your administration,” Blunt said. “You know that. But I haven’t seen any stories in The Times this afternoon. What does it say?”
“It says that people in the administration are freaked out over some terror threats that we’re supposedly not reporting to the American people. Now, there aren’t many on my staff who know about this. And of the ones who do, none of them are as adept as using the media like you are.”
“I didn’t do it,” Blunt said flatly. “I’m too focused on making sure nothing happens to be leaking information to the press.”
Young sighed. “Okay, but if you hear about anyone who does, you better tell me.”
“Of course, sir.”
“So, have you made any progress?”
“We’re starting to put things together, but nothing monumental at the moment. I’ll keep you posted as the situation develops.”
“I want to know immediately. Don’t let me get caught off guard by this thing.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it. But, sir?”
“Yes.”
“There’s still time to call the event off,” Blunt said.
“And how would that look now?”
“Just get out ahead of the story before it takes off and invent another reason. Maybe you can say you fell ill.”
Young laughed. “Just over four months before the election, you want me to raise questions about my health?”
“I think those would be more difficult to answer than defending another 9/11 incident.”
“No, you do your job and make sure nothing happens. I’ll handle the damage control.”
Young hung up and slammed his fist down on his desk. He needed to intervene—and fast—before this story blew up on all the cable news networks. After considering the best way to squelch the story, he called his campaign advisor to get a contact. Ten minutes later, Young was on an impromptu conference call with his communications director and a video editor.
An hour later, the video editor had a polished-looking video about the Fourth of July celebration, complete with a short recording Young made with the help of his staff. And a half-hour after that, the video was shared everywhere.
In the clip, images of soldiers mixed with fireworks and everyday people interacting in various places were set to a rousing acoustic version of the Star-Spangled Banner. The entire piece was tied together with Young's voiceover: "Americans everywhere must realize how our differences make us that much stronger as a nation. This unique characteristic of our country is something we shouldn't take for granted. And this Fourth of July, I invite everyone to join us for a spectacular event in the nation's capital where we will spend an evening celebrating our freedom."
Young beamed as he turned on the television and listened to pundits gushing over the signal the president was sending in the face of a supposed terrorist threat. He poured himself a glass of bourbon before retiring to his private quarters for the day. With all the frenzied activity, he’d almost forgotten about Olivia being home. He roamed from room to room, calling for her.
“Liv, where are you?” Young said. “Are you home?”
After he didn’t hear from her, he contacted the head of the Secret Service to inquire about her whereabouts.
“She went out with one of her friends to get a pedicure, sir, but I haven’t heard from her team
