Dangerous Secrets (51 page)

At that moment, he knew he was in love with
her.

***

‶
Hart Lewiston, have you
completely lost your mind?″ Carla turned angrily and glared at him. She
had been pacing the floor, clenching and unclenching her hands, since Hart got
back to the hotel room.

This was routine for Carla when she felt
helpless, when things got out of her control. He knew her reaction would be
volatile over his decision to go public with the news of Morgan Kirk
wood′s relationship to himself, but he hadn′t expected her
explosion to go on this long. She was like a Fourth of July starburst that kept
exploding.

‶
Have you looked at the
polls?″ she continued.
‶
Do you have any idea what your standing is now that
you′ve gone on national television and told the nation you have an
illegitimate daughter?″

‶
Black daughter, Carla.
Let′s not forget that point of contention. I have an illegitimate black
daughter. And she′s older than our marriage. When she was born her mother
didn′t tell me and I didn′t know you. So none of this smears
you.″

‶
You′re wrong. All of it
smears me. We′re a team, Hart, or at least we′re supposed to be.
Yet you do this without my consent.″

‶
Carla, as I have said for the
last three days, I had no choice in the matter. If I didn′t do it and try
to contain the situation, someone else would have and we′d lose not only
control, but whatever credibility we could salvage.″

‶
It wouldn′t have made a
difference, would it Hart? If you had a choice, you′d have done the same
thing.″

Hart combed his hair back with both hands. He
was tired of fighting with his wife and fighting with his campaign manager, and
his head felt like it had a pressure cooker inside it. It seemed as if he were
fighting with everyone.
‶
Carla, she is my child.″

‶
Stop calling her a
child,″ Carla snapped.
‶
She′s a thirty-year-old woman.″

Hart sighed. He wanted this to end. He′d
try reason one more time.
‶
Carla, would you want me to turn my back if you were
the woman I got pregnant and only found out we had a daughter now?″

Carla faced him squarely, lowered her chin and
looked at him over the rim of glasses she only wore in the privacy of their
home.
‶
That
would
never
be us, Hart.″

A few days ago Hart would have sworn he′d
seen every mood his wife had, knew her completely, how she would react in any
situation, but she′d surprised him with her dislike of the current state.
Carla had once worked for the Children′s Relief Organization. She′d
traveled the world over, even to many third-world countries, on behalf of
children. To think that this child, his child, could cause such an explosive
reaction in her was beyond his belief.

‶
Carla, we′ll weather
this.″ Hart took her hand, but fell short of pulling her to him.
‶
The
polls will return to favor us. They have in the past. The country will recover
from the shock and we′ll win this election.″

‶
What planet are you living
on?″ She pulled her hand free.
‶
You go on television before we
have time to find out what this person or persons want and″—she paused,
swallowing—
‶
make
an announcement that has such far-reaching implications, I can′t phantom
them.″ She spread her hands.
‶
What were we supposed to do?
What were we supposed to say?″

‶
It was painfully obvious to the
national television audience, Carla, that you didn′t stand with me. You
weren′t even at the press conference. And the press noticed.″

She turned away from him.

‶
If anything lowered the polls
it was the fact that we didn′t present a united front. More time on the
evening news went to the fact that you didn′t attend the announcement
than the fact of the daughter.″

‶
So this is my fault?″

‶
Carla, I′m not trying to
lay blame anywhere. I′m trying to understand what it is that has you so
upset.″

‶
You can′t figure it
out?″

‶
No, Carla, I can′t.
If
this has to do with you being the
First Lady, we haven′t lost yet.″ Hart walked up behind her. There
was a time when she would have turned into his arms.
‶
I′m sure
Morgan Kirkwood will not cost me the election. Trust me, you′ll have your
chance.″

Hart placed his hands on her shoulders and
pulled her back. Then he leaned his chin on her shoulder and slipped his arms
around her.
‶
We′ll
make it, Carla. As long as we′re together.″

***

The six of them sat around one of the
coaches′ dining tables looking as if they were about to leave for a
funeral. Only Jim Burton and Jack seemed to have appetites. Allie ate only a
few spoonfuls of her grapefruit, excusing herself, saying she had to make up
for all the fattening foods Jan had made her eat over the last few days. Jan
said she had to do tumbling later and she was too old to do it on a full
stomach. Jim Burton challenged her remark, saying she wasn′t too old for
anything. He completed his full breakfast and was drinking a large glass of
orange juice. Next to Jack′s empty plate were two sugar packets with the
torn-off tops stuffed inside, indicating the number of cups of coffee
he′d consumed.

Morgan had eaten half a bowl of cereal and drunk
half a cup of coffee. The buffet bar was stocked with yogurt, oatmeal, healthy
cereals if that was a person′s preference. It also had bagels, sausage
and eggs to order for the coaches only and an assortment of fruits, individual
or mixed as a salad. Yesterday had scared more than the wits out of her and
apparently her appetite went with it.

She′d been sitting on the balcony trying
to read, angry with Jack for forcing her to stay behind. She hadn′t
gotten very far into the book. If someone had asked her the title she would be
hard-pressed to remember anything about it. Even the color of the jacket
escaped her. She′d heard nothing, not the creak of a step, the tread of a
shoe or the movement of the air about her. She was completely focused on being
outwitted and that had allowed Chung to walk right into the place where she
hid. He could have killed her and no one would have known anything, but the
moment he slipped his hand over her mouth and pulled her into a position where
she couldn′t move, she heard lack′s voice in the room. He froze,
holding her, listening intently to the few words Jack spoke to Allie before
stepping onto the balcony. Then he nearly relaxed. Morgan felt the change in
him, surprise, rigidity and total calm. It was as if he had really come for
Jack and she was only the pawn he used to get to his real mark.

‶
Don′t you think you
should stay a little longer?″ Jan′s voice broke into her thought.

‶
We′ve already overstayed
our welcome,″ Jack answered.
‶
We got what we came for. After
yesterday′s incident it′s best if we don′t put you or your
school in any other danger.″

‶
Well, I′ll have the
kitchen make sure you have food to take with you.″ Jan got up and hugged
Morgan.
‶
I
don′t want you to go,″ she whispered. Then she released her and
walked away. Morgan felt the emotion in her and matched it with something she
wasn′t used to feeling.

‶
I gotta go too, hon,″
Allie said.
‶
Jan′s
got me teaching a class in the big floor gym. It′s the furthest one from
here. . .I′d better get going.″ Allie stood and went to Jack. He
stood up.
‶
Take
care of her.″

‶
I will.″

Allie hugged him.
‶
I′m holding
you to that,″ Allie said in a voice meant only for Jack, but Morgan heard
it. Turning back to her, the two women hugged her too.
‶
I don′t want
you to go either.″

‶
We′ll be fine,
Allie,″ she told her.
‶
It′s only ninety miles. Once we get there
we′ll have the full protection of the FBI.″

Morgan smiled even though she felt like crying.
It took a great effort to keep her voice from shaking. She had corrected her
previous lie that they were going to Washington. The FBI was closer and it
seemed to make Jan feel better to know they only had to go ninety miles to
reach safety.

‶
And I′ll never see you
again.″

‶
Of course you will. Where did
you get an idea like that?″

Morgan glanced at Jack, then at Jim and Max.
She wondered if one of them had said anything to her about what happened after
Morgan got to the FBI. She hadn′t. She didn′t want to think about
it herself. All three men shook their heads to her silent question.

‶
I′ll call you when all of
this is over.″

‶
Promise me,′′ Allie
insisted. This morning she was wearing a white leotard with black stockings.
She had a long jacket over it with the camp logo on the breast pocket.
″Promise me!″

‶
I promise.″

‶
You know Jan and I will always
be there. We made a pact.″

Tears gathered in her eyes then.
‶
Yes,
Allie, we made a pact. Just keep that cell phone number and soon I′ll
reach out and touch you.″

She saw the serious look in Allie′s eyes.

‶
I promise.″

She hugged her again and stepped back. Going
toward the screened door, Agents Burton and Tilden joined her, all of them
leaving at the same time.

She sat back down. Jack played idly with the
sugar packet.

‶
More coffee?″ she asked.
He shook his head.

‶
It′s going to be hard on
you all.″

Morgan didn′t want to talk about this.
She wanted to run away. She wanted to go to the beam gym, the only other place
she′d been allowed to go and only under the cover of darkness when the
campers had retired to their cabins and all the counselors had accounted for
their charges. She wanted the padded prison, for that prison gave her what
she′d never had and always wanted. It gave her Jack, who was there to
check on her. It gave her Allie and Jan, her friends, regardless of their
background or circumstances. It gave her safety and hope.

She stopped at the thought of it. Hope. That was
what she′d wanted, what she′d reached for all her life and only
been allowed to glimpse for short periods of time. This was her haven, her
safety net, her sanctuary, and she wanted to stay.

‶
We′re going to have to
leave soon.″ Jack spoke as if he could read her mind. He might be reading
her face. She was used to controlling her features, but she hadn′t tried
a moment ago. Her thoughts were probably evident. And Jack was an expert in
reading her wishes.

‶
What about the ring?″ He
hadn′t told her much yesterday. The bank seemed unimportant after Chung
had tried to kill them.

‶
It wasn′t just the ring.
It was the paper it was wrapped in and the other papers in the envelope.″

‶
The printing was in
Korean,″ Morgan remembered.

‶
There was writing on the back
of the clipping.″

‶
I never figured out what it
meant.″

‶
You could read it?″
Jack′s eyebrow went up.

She shook her head.
‶
They never had a
course in Korean anywhere near St. Charles. I would have enrolled. I took
conversational Chinese, but it was only offered for one semester before the
professor left to return to New York. The symbols, while similar, are not the
same.″

‶
I know. I read Korean.″

‶
You do!″

‶
Yes, I do,″ Jack replied.
‶
It′s
rusty but I can get by in a pinch.″

Why should she be surprised? He flew helicopters,
had a pulse gun, could move quieter than an air bubble, and understood
terrorists. Why should reading an Oriental language be anything other than
standard operating procedure?

‶
What did the paper say?″

‶
How much do you know about
Korean politics?″

Morgan shrugged.
‶
Not much. I know there is a
North and South Korea. The north is communist and the south is democratic. The
government structure of the south is much the same as ours. After the Korean
War in the
‵
50s
they set up a republican form of government. I think the one they are operating
under now is the Fifth Republic. I can′t remember why they have numbers
to their republics. I believe they change when the presidents had the
constitution rewritten. They have a president as the leader and a prime minister
who functions much like a vice president. There is one legislative body called
the National Assembly.

‶
You know more than most history
majors.″

‶
What does this have to do with
the ring and the papers?″

‶
The ring holds the crest of a
very old Korean family. Dynasty generations. The stories surrounding it vary
from k being lost many years ago to being safely stored in the presidential
palace.″

‶
Then it does belong to the
president?″

‶
It′s actually the
property of his wife. The ring comes down through her family, not his.″

Morgan picked up the sugar packet, twin to the
one Jack toyed with.
‶
How did it come to be in a prison?″

‶
I can only speculate. At the
time you were in Korea, the president was Ji-Moon Chang. His son, Pak, is
currently running for the office his father once held. His opposition naturally
wants to find something that will discredit him. And you have it.″