A Safe House

33

Stone and Jenna made affectionate love that evening. And when they were exhausted, he took a deep breath and spoke.

“Jenna?”

“I’m still here. Hadn’t you noticed?”

“We have to talk.”

“Uh-oh. Are you dumping me?”

“Certainly not. But, given your decision to be Jenna again, you will have to face some realities.”

“I’ve been Jenna all my life, and I managed it pretty well. Except for the marriage to Wallace, I mean.”

“These realities are going to be new ones.”

“Enumerate them, please.”

“First of all, Lance, on hearing your plans, has withdrawn from the picture.”

“What picture is that?”

“The entire picture. Since you are no longer a congressional ward, as it were, you are outside of government protection.”

“Government protection was a pain in the ass,” she said, “and I won’t be sorry to see it go.”

“Well, you’re still going to need protection, but you’re going to have to start paying for it yourself. If you’re going to Key West, you’re going to need a security squad of, I’d say, eight.”

“Why so many?”

“You’ll need two at a time to guard you, and they all have to sleep, eat, and entertain themselves.”

“How much is this going to cost?”

“You’ll have to speak to Mike Freeman about that.”

“How long will I need this security?”

“Until Wallace and his minions have demonstrably stopped trying to kill you. I’m not sure that’s possible to predict.”

“Well, life is unpredictable, isn’t it?”

“Yes, it is. I’ll do what I can to set this up for you. And I’ll supply transportation and the house.”

“Thank you, that’s very kind, Stone. But at some point, of your choosing, I’d like you to send me a bill.”

“I don’t want to see you bleed away your fortune.”

“You’re forgetting something,” she said.

“What am I forgetting?”

“Jamie.”

“Well, you’ll need to decide how to dispose of her ashes...”

“That’s not what I mean. Our parents, both now dead, divided their estate between us, so we each got half their money. Now I will inherit Jamie’s share.”

“I’ll have an estate attorney from Woodman & Weld do the legal work on that.”

“And Jamie was a much bolder investor than I, so her share, I think, has doubled.”

Stone thought about that. “So, you’re saying that your net worth will now be something around or over two hundred million? The attorney will determine that.”

“My point is that I can afford to pay for your work, your airplane, and for the security detail you’re proposing.”

“All right, at an appropriate time, I’ll bill you, and so will Strategic Services.”

“I’m glad we’ve settled that. Now, how am I going to tell the world that I am alive and Jamie is dead?”

“I think you are going to need a publicist,” Stone said. “I can recommend a good one.”

“What will he do?”

“She. She will know exactly how to make the world aware of your, ah, status, and she will handle all the media inquiries while you hide in Key West.”

“ ‘Hide’?”

“Jenna, if the media knows where to find you, they’ll turn your life into a living hell. Your photograph will be in every publication and on every TV news show in the nation.”

“How long will I have to hide?”

“The best person to tell us that will be the publicist. I think that one of the things she will want you to do is to subject yourself to a probing interview that will answer all the questions that people want answers to. Once they know the answers, you will gradually fade from the national interest.”

“How...”

“Weeks, perhaps a few months, and you cannot walk the streets of Key West, or any other municipality, during that time because you would be recognized and harassed.”

“How will I occupy myself?”

“My library will be at your disposal, and there are enough TVs in the house for you to catch up on hundreds of old movies, athletic events, and home-improvement techniques, not to mention shopping for small household appliances. Then, toward the end of your, ah, confinement, you can decide where you want to live and start shopping for real estate.”

“You make it sound like I’ll be a nun.”

“Sort of.”

“And what am I going to do for sex?”

Busted, Stone thought.

“Are my security guards going to provide that service?”

“Not contractually,” he replied. “I suppose you’ll have to play that by ear. Tell me, is there an old beau or two who might visit now and then?”

“Well, let’s see,” she said. “Yes! There’s you!”

“I’m only one man,” Stone said, “and I have a life, a dog, several houses, and a law practice to attend to. Mind you, I’m not opting out. I’ll come to see you when I can, but it won’t be twice a day, like now. Not even twice a month.”

“I’m going to have to think about this,” she said.

“Please do that.”