Termination Orders(84)

But Morgan resisted it, with the same instinct that told him to never give in, never surrender. That instinct had saved his life more times than he could count, and he had learned to trust it.

“We see a doctor, and we keep moving,” he said. Conley looked at him disapprovingly but didn’t press the point further.

Morgan remembered the crumpled blueprint from Natasha’s hideout, which he had placed in between his seat and Conley’s when they took off in the car. He picked it up, and, unfolding the wispy paper, he laid it out on the dashboard, part of it hanging down over the edge like a tablecloth. He examined the writing on it, blinking hard to keep himself awake and concentrated.

“What is it?” asked Conley.

“It’s RFK Stadium,” he said. “A detailed floor plan.”

“That can’t be good,” said Conley. “You don’t think she could be planning a terrorist attack? A few well-placed bombs . . . if the stadium is packed . . .”

“I don’t know,” said Morgan, looking closely at the blue lines on the paper. “Look, this isn’t old like the rest of the notes on the blueprint—an X drawn in pencil, here in the middle of the field. And there’s a number written off to the side here: 340.”

“What do you suppose that is?” asked Conley. “A seat or section number?”

Morgan shook his head. “I don’t know. But Nickerson said something before he left. Something about Saturday being a big day.”

“Who’s playing Saturday at RFK?” Conley wondered aloud. And then it hit Morgan.

“I know what the number means. Nobody’s playing on Saturday. That senator, McKay, she’s giving a speech there. I imagine that X is right about where her podium is going to be. Conley, that number is a range, as in for a rifle. T is planning to assassinate Senator McKay.”





CHAPTER 38


Dennis Poole walked into Senator Lana McKay’s office to find her sitting at her cluttered desk, with a pen in her hand, poring over a thin document, deep in concentration. She looked up at him from the paper and smiled, that sincere, guilelessly disarming smile of hers that he had always found so compelling, that had won him when he had first met her. And yet he knew there was a fighter behind that smile, one who could be as hard and unyielding as steel.

“Hi, Dennis,” she said. “Tell me, how are things looking out there?”

“Crazy as usual. But it’s all going to work out.”

“God willing,” she said wearily.

“Ritchie wants to know what you think of the speech.”

“I’m looking it over one last time now,” she said. “Tell him I have some notes to go over with him, but it’s powerful. Between you and me, this is his best yet.” She sighed and sat back in her chair. “I just hope it’s good enough to get people to take notice.”

“It will be,” he said. “You’re going to make sure of that.”

“I’m glad one of us has that kind of confidence,” she replied. “I just hope it’s not misplaced.”

“I’ve seen how people respond to you, Lana. They see you, and they know you’re the real deal. It’s going to happen.”

“It is, isn’t it?” she said, perking up. “We’re going to stop them. No more using taxpayer money to fund thuggery. No more profiting off the blood of American soldiers.”

“You made a believer out of me, Lana. You’re going to do this.”

“We’re going to do it, Dennis. You’ve been a crucial part of everything I’ve done in office. This is going to be your big day as much as it is mine.”

He flashed her a broad, grateful smile. “We’re gonna push this law through,” he said. “No compromises, no derailments. We’ll expose the opponents of justice and transparency, and they will be shamed into voting for us. If politics is the only thing they believe in, then that’s what we’ll play. We’ll expose their hypocrisy and corruption. The electorate won’t stand for maintaining the status quo.”

“I wish it didn’t have to be this way,” she said.

“You’ve made me believe that it doesn’t, Lana. Even when I was a kid fresh out of college, I knew that most politicians didn’t act against their own interests, that they voted with their biggest donors, always seeking out money and votes, almost never giving a damn about justice or the people their policies affected. But this, this is different. Lana, you made this cynic believe in our government again.”

She smiled softly at him. “It truly makes me happy to hear you say that, Dennis. All that’s left now is to reach everyone else.”