Tracie Peterson (24 page)

“What’s up?” he asked, jumping from the car. “Is it Cara?”

“No. As far as I know Cara is fine. I overheard Russell Owens and the governor talking. Russell wants your blood and Kerns just handed him the axe. I think the time has come for you to lay low.”

“I think exactly the opposite is in line,” Harry said with a grin. “Cara and I have already discussed this. We decided if Russell tried to have me fired or otherwise discredited, Cara would transfer me to Wichita as her personal bodyguard.”

Melissa laughed. “Well, that will certainly make Owens’ plans for romantic dinners with Cara a little less romantic.”

“That’s the idea. Kerns doesn’t have too much to say about who Cara takes on staff.”

“So you aren’t concerned?”

“Not for me,” Harry replied. “But I’m very worried about Cara.”

“You love her, don’t you?” Melissa was surprised that she’d thrust the question into the light. She’d guessed Harry’s feelings for a long time but knew he’d gone far to keep them hidden. The blank expression on his face clearly answered her question.

“You are a good reporter,” he said with a bit of a smirk. “But please keep this news flash under wraps, okay?”

“I’m glad about it, Harry. I think Cara probably feels the same way, although she’s never said it in so many words.”

“Well,” Harry said, with a quick glance at his watch, “she’ll come around to our thinking in time.”

“So, where do we meet next time?” Melissa questioned.

“If there’s a next time, Mrs. Wipple, let’s meet at the zoo.”

“Good enough. I’m certainly glad you’re not worried about this.”

“God looks out for us, Melissa. You’d do well to consider the way He works in your own life.”

Melissa frowned. “You and Cara both seem so sure of where you stand with God, and yet I feel most of the time like God is just this entity out there somewhere.”

“He’s only as close as you let Him be.” Harry’s words struck a chord.

“You make it sound so simple.” Melissa tried to sound lighthearted about the matter, but truth be told, she didn’t feel so lighthearted about it anymore. “Besides, how do you explain Cara’s situation if God is so close?”

Harry leaned against the car and crossed his arms. “The way I’ve seen it so far, God has walked every step of the way with Cara. How else could she deal with such ruthlessness and lack of conscience? God is watching over her, protecting her, and guiding her to make the right choices. I don’t know that I would have given in to Kerns’ demands, but Cara did what she thought she had to. If it isn’t right for her to be lieutenant governor, God will show her.”

“I wish I had your faith,” Melissa replied.

“It isn’t all that hard to get,” Harry answered, a broad smile lining his tired face. “Accept that Jesus came to offer you salvation, confess and repent of your sins, and turn your worries over to God. Faith comes along the way, kind of out of practice, so to speak. You have to step forward, trusting that God will be there. If you give it a shot, you’ll find that He never lets you down.”

“Explain Teri Davis, then.” Melissa really wanted answers. She hoped, almost prayed, that Harry could make sense of the conflict inside her.

“I can’t. I can’t explain Teri, or the hundreds of other things I’ve seen while on the force—things that seem heinous and unjust, without reason or explanation. But,” Harry said, reaching out a hand to Melissa, “God gave me a peace about trusting Him with the details. I may get frustrated because I don’t have all the answers, but God always reveals that He has it under control.”

“And that’s enough for you?” Melissa felt the firm grasp of Harry’s large hand.

“It’s all you’ll ever need. If God’s in control, then we don’t have to be. And if the alternative is that we take control and God gets a seat out there somewhere, as you put it, the picture becomes pretty grim.”

“I guess that makes sense. Thanks, Harry.”

He gave her hand a squeeze and droped his hold. “Anytime.”

****

Cara was working to satisfy one of her more demanding deadlines when Liz announced that Harry Oberlin was there to see her. Perking up, Cara felt her pulse quicken. It had been less than a week since Harry had rescued her from Russell, and in that short time they’d talked nearly every night.

“Hello there.”

Cara looked up to find him dressed very casually in jeans and a white button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up. He was smiling at her like he did most of the time, looking for all the world like a man with a secret.

“Hi.” She cleared her desk. “What brings you to Wichita?”

“I’m job hunting.”

“What?”

“Russell Owens has asked King Kerns for permission to be ‘off with my head,’ and I thought I’d check out greener pastures.”

Cara sighed. They’d both anticipated this action after Russell’s thwarted attack. “Harry, if you don’t want to move down here, I’ll put my foot down with Kerns and—”

“You’ll do nothing of the kind. And why wouldn’t I want to move to Wichita? Long-distance dating is kind of hard on the wallet and the heart.”

“Is that what we’re doing?” Cara laughed and tried to
hide her nervousness. She’d found herself thinking a great deal about Harry these last few days. Sometimes she even wondered what Jack would have thought of him.

“I think so,” Harry finally answered, shutting her office door. “Although at times I question exactly what it is myself. Look, I want to say something, and I’d appreciate it if you would agree to hear me out.”

His sudden seriousness worried her. They’d never resolved her rejection of him on the night of the inaugural ball. Even after the incident with Russell, Harry had never said a word to her about it. Perhaps now she was being called to account for it. When Cara found it impossible to reply, Harry continued.

“I’m able to take care of myself. With God, I’m a pretty heavy-duty force. So I don’t want you thinking you have to baby-sit me or offer me a hand-out. Kerns and Owens don’t worry me for myself. It’s you that concerns me.”

“I know,” she said in a whisper.

“I’m glad. I guess since you stormed off the night of the ball, I’ve been trying to figure out what I did wrong and how I could have handled that situation better.”

“But you didn’t do anything wrong,” Cara argued. “I just can’t deal with everything at once. Kerns scares me, and his agenda is weighing heavily on me. Then Russell comes down here and tries to threaten me with Brianna. . . .”

“He did what?”

Cara swallowed hard, remembering that Harry knew nothing of Russell’s threats. “It’s not important now.” She got up and started to pace. “I think I’m going to have to get out of this job. I don’t know exactly when or how, but perhaps if I’m out of the picture, Kerns can assign whomever he chooses to be lieutenant governor.” It was as if the idea had come to her for the first time.

“That’s a decision only you can make,” Harry replied. “I’m only here because I want to protect you, if you want me. Otherwise, I’m perfectly capable of looking for work elsewhere.”

“No! I want you here,” she said, stopping suddenly. She couldn’t bear the idea of Harry getting too far away. It was still a mystery to her exactly what she was going to do with him, but keeping him close sounded very reasonable.

Harry smiled. “I’m glad. I can start immediately. Oh, and I expect some pretty good job benefits.”

Cara tried to ignore the nagging reminder of Kerns and returned the smile. “I’ll just bet you do.”

Thirty-Four

By August, Bob Kerns was finally able to see some results to his no-nonsense approach to government. Not only had he reduced the state employee numbers, but he had managed to arrange some very comfortable deals on the side with private businessmen. Deals that would continue to support his affluent lifestyle and buy him the power he craved.

He was, in fact, leading what many people called a “charmed life.” His political hard lines were taking the state by storm, and while employees who stood to lose their jobs were less than satisfied with Kerns’ style, taxpayers loved the idea of cuts that would trickle down their way via tax reductions slated for the next year.

He smiled at his reflection and finished running an electric razor over his face. Even Cara Kessler was less of a problem than he’d anticipated. She’d vexed Russell Owens by assigning Harry Oberlin to her personal security staff, but Kerns couldn’t have cared less. If it kept her feeling some portion of control—control that was unimportant to Kerns—then it made for good politics and a quiet lieutenant governor.

Coming out of the bathroom, Kerns pulled on a fresh shirt and prepared to face a new workday. He glanced with something akin to indifference at a Kansas City newspaper article that spoke of the suicide of George Sheldon. The article indicated Sheldon’s trouble with the EPA along with his waning health as reasons for the depression that led to suicide.
Good riddance.
One less problem for him to address.

“Who are you sl . . . sleeping with this week?” Debra slurred, coming into the room. The drink in her hand at seven in the morning was either an indication of an all-night pity party or an early morning jump on the day.

Kerns glanced at his watch. “Isn’t it a little early to be drunk, even for you?”

“I hate your guts!” Debra cried and stumbled forward as if she might throw the drink at Kerns. He easily knocked it out of her hands and onto the thick mauve carpet below.

“Stay away from me, Debra, or I’ll have you committed.”

She rushed at him with her nails bared upward to his face. “You’re a lying conniving cheater!”

“What’s going on?” Danielle had come to the doorway just as Bob had taken hold of Debra’s flailing hands.

“Your mother is out of control. I’m afraid we’re going to have to put her in a hospital.”

Danielle looked mortified. “You don’t mean you’re going to force her into a psychiatric ward, do you?”

“I mean exactly that!” he yelled. “Look at her! She’s drunk before eight in the morning. She goes through the stuff like water, and there’s no telling when she’ll get behind the wheel in this condition and kill someone. Don’t you think we owe it to her and the rest of the world to put her into rehab?”

Danielle hurried forward to encircle her mother’s shoulders. “Please calm down, Mama. You’ve got Dad all upset. If you don’t calm down, he’s going to send you away.”

Debra seemed to ease back a little, but Bob still held her arms at the wrist. “It’s too late for that, Danielle. She will be sent to get the help she needs. If nothing else, it will get her out of my hair and leave me free to do what I have to do.”

“Don’t you mean
who
you have to do?” Debra screeched. “You lousy two-timing . . .” Kerns freed a hand and slapped her hard.

Danielle began to cry. “Please stop. Please don’t do this to each other.”

Kerns looked at his daughter in complete disgust. “Get her out of my sight,” he told her and thrust Debra into Danielle’s embrace.

By this time Grace Gleason, their housekeeper, had appeared to offer her assistance. She frowned at her employer, but Kerns had never cared about winning domestic popularity
contests. He grabbed his tie and coat and turned at the door. “This matter will be settled tonight!”

Unable to control his temper, Kerns pounded his fist against the wall outside his door. It left an indentation from the blow and sent shooting pain up his arm. In his mind, he blamed Debra for the discomfort.

****

“I guess you heard about Sheldon,” Russell said when Kerns got into the car.

Scowling, Kerns motioned to the road. “Just drive and we’ll talk about something important.”

“I figured it was important by the look on your face.” Russell pulled out of the drive with only a single side-glance at Kerns.

“The time has come to put Debra into a hospital,” he announced. “I want you to call Menninger’s Pyschiatric Clinic and make the arrangements.”

“Are you sure? I mean, this is going to be hard on your public appearance.” Russell merged into the main thoroughfare.

“Not if we do it right.” Kerns was working hard to regain control of his anger. He’d had it with Debra’s morning brawls and nightly drunken tirades. More than once security had called at the Capitol and relayed their serious confrontations with a very drunken first lady. It was all more than he should have to handle. Perhaps when he went public with the seriousness of Debra’s problem, Serena Perez would offer him a bit of comfort. She had been such a perplexing woman. Kerns found it a personal challenge to discover a way to get her into his bed. So far, however, she’d flatly refused him. Maybe sympathy was the right approach. Maybe his broken heart over Debra’s condition would win him some intimate comfort.

****

The day passed in humid muggy heat, and even though August was usually a drier month in Kansas, the skies promised
rain and perhaps a thunderstorm or two. By nine o’clock that night, Kerns was more than ready to sign the papers that would take Debra out of his life. She had called no less than forty times to harass and harangue. The calls were always intercepted for him by Serena, but it was clearly a situation out of control.

“Have you been in my office today?” Russell questioned Kerns. He came into the governor’s inner office with a jumble of papers and files. “I found this mess on the floor, and it would appear that someone had knocked it from my desk.”

Kerns shook his head. “I’ve been too busy to make pit stops in your office. What are the papers, anyway?”

“Nothing of great importance, but I’m missing a couple of tapes.”

“Tapes?” Kerns asked warily. “What tapes?”

“The tapes we make from each of our meetings with the Association. At least I think that’s what they were.”

“Imbecile!” Kerns jumped up, completely enraged. He could feel his patience give out. “Those tapes in the wrong hands could bury us forever. Find them!”

“I will,” Russell replied. “There aren’t too many possibilities, you know. I leave the office locked and only my secretary and yours have the key.”

“Along with security.”

“Look, I only mentioned it because I thought maybe you took them. They might just have fallen behind some papers. I’ll do a more thorough search tomorrow. After all, if someone has taken them, there’s not a lot we can do about it but wait.”