Mounting Fears

5

WILL DIDN'T BOTHER WITH AIR FORCE ONE; THE HELICOPTER WOULD GET HIM TO New York just as fast, and it would land on top of the old Pan Am building, very near the Waldorf.

Halfway to New York, the copilot's voice came over the intercom system to Will's headset. "Phone call for you, Mr. President. The speaker of the House, Mr. Wainwright."

Will picked up the phone. "Tank?"

"Mr. President, I'm getting a lot of press questions about some sort of trouble in Pakistan."

"If you don't hear from the Joint Chiefs, I'll tell you about that at our six-o'clock meeting," Will said.

"Is anybody making an announcement about George?"

"I assume his press secretary will handle that."

"I've had a couple of calls about that, too, from the press."

"Refer them to the office of the vice president," Will said. "Anything else?"

"Are you going to mention this Pakistan thing in your speech?"

"I'll know more about that at six o'clock," Will said. "See you then, Tank." He took off the headset. "Kitty, give George's press secretary a call and see how they want to handle the announcement of his surgery. Also, ask her what time I can call the hospital and get an answer on the results and speak to Nancy Kiel."

"Yes, sir," Kitty said, taking the phone from Will.

Will sat and watched Philadelphia and New Jersey pass under them. Half an hour later they set down gently on top of the office building. They took an elevator down to the street, where a motorcade awaited, then drove to the Waldorf on the traffic-cleared streets. Will hated driving in New York because of the inconvenience it caused so many people, but at least this was a short trip. They arrived at the garage entrance to the Waldorf and were whisked up to the Towers, to the Presidential Suite. By the time Will had opened a bottle of water, his valet was already unpacking his and Kate's clothes and sending them to be pressed.

Will opened his briefcase and began reading the morning traffic, as his mail was called.

AT PRECISELY SIX O'CLOCK, Governor Martin Stanton of California arrived, followed closely by the speaker of the House, William Wainwright, known as "Tank" because of his considerable bulk.

Tim shook their hands and offered them seats and coffee. "Marty, I'm delighted you'll be on the ticket, and I'm sorry I couldn't give you more notice, but George told me only this morning."

"I understand, Mr. President, and I'm delighted to be on the ticket."

"Tank, has anybody briefed you on the Pakistani incident?"

"Yes, Mr. President, an aide from the Joint Chiefs came over. Marty was there, too, so we're up to date. I gather we're still waiting for the results of the army raid on the missile site."

"That's right," Will said. "We've got Navy SEALs and the Air Force on standby, in case they're needed."

"I hope to God the Pakistani army is successful."

"So do I, Tank. Marty, do you have a draft of your acceptance speech?"

"Yes, sir," Stanton said, handing over a copy. Will handed it to Kitty. "Tank, what's the schedule for the convention?"

"The platform is being adopted now-it's a final vote, so the debate is over. I'll make the announcement about George at seven and introduce Marty for his acceptance speech, then he'll introduce you at exactly eight-oh-one p.m. That'll give the networks a minute for their commentators to appear wise."

Kitty answered a ringing phone. "It's Walter Reed, Mr. President."

Will picked up a phone. "This is Will Lee."

"Mr. President, this is Dr. Brad Hardy. I am the vice president's surgeon."

"Good evening, Dr. Hardy. How is the vice president?"

"Not very well, I'm afraid. His condition was even worse than we had suspected, and there's a chance he won't survive. He's in the ICU now, and we'll know more in a few hours, tomorrow morning at the latest."

"I'm sorry to hear that, but thank you for letting me know. Is there anything I can do for him or you?"

"No, sir."

"Then good evening." Will hung up. "Kitty, find Nancy Kiel for me, please. She'll be at Walter Reed."

"Yes, sir." Kitty got on the phone. "Mr. President, I have Mrs. Kiel."

Will picked up the phone. "Nancy?"

"Hello, Will."

"I've just spoken to the surgeon."

"I know. It doesn't look good, I'm afraid."

"Nancy, how did he get this far along before the surgery?"

"He wouldn't do it, Will, and I couldn't make him, and his doctors couldn't, either. He wanted to finish out his term first. If only he'd done this last summer… but he just wouldn't."

"Is there anything I can do for you or George?"

"No, I think everything that can be done has been done. When will the announcement be made?"

"Tank Wainwright will announce it to the convention at seven o'clock and introduce Martin Stanton, who's replacing George on the ticket. I know this seems rushed, but we don't really have a choice."

"I agree. That's the way to do it."

"I'll have Kitty speak to George's office about it."

"Thank you for calling, Will."

"When George wakes up, tell him I'm praying for him."

"I will."

"Good night." Will hung up the phone.

"How is he?" the speaker asked.

"Not good," Will said.

WILL WAS BACKSTAGE at Madison Square Garden in the reception room that had been arranged for him. Kate arrived from Washington with his stepson, Peter, in tow.

Will kissed them both. "Any news on the Pakistani thing?"

"The counterattack should be in progress now," she said. "I don't know when we'll have the result."

Kitty came over. "Excuse me, Mr. President, but I think we should get Mrs. Lee and Peter to their box now, before the speaker introduces Governor Stanton."

"Right," Will said. He kissed them good-bye, then sat down to watch the proceedings on television, like everyone else.

"LADIES AND GENTLEMEN," Martin Stanton roared, "the once and future president of the United States of America!"

Will entered from the wings, and a roar went up in the huge arena. The band was playing "Happy Days Are Here Again," but nobody could hear. The pandemonium continued for a good five minutes, while Will plastered a smile on his face, put an arm around Stanton, and waved like an idiot until they quieted.

As the roar expired, Will stepped forward to the lectern and checked the TelePrompTers on both sides of where he stood.

"The first thing I should tell you is that I've just spoken to the vice president's surgeon and to Nancy Kiel, and George is out of surgery. I hope we'll have more news of him before the night is over.

"I know that having a new vice-presidential candidate came as a surprise to you, but I didn't know about it myself, until George came to see me this morning. I hope you'll all mention him in your prayers tonight.

"Martin Stanton is going to be a great vice president!" he said, and the roar came again, while Stanton waved from the sidelines. Then, as Will was taking a breath to begin his acceptance speech he heard two cell phones begin ringing behind him on the stage. Then he heard more cell phones, some from the audience, and two Secret Service agents came running down the aisles and stood at the foot of the podium, facing the audience.

Will looked over his shoulder and saw Tim Coleman striding toward him from the wings, his cell phone in his hand.

Will stepped away from the microphones. "What's happened?" he asked as Tim reached him.

Tim leaned in close to Will's ear. "There's been a nuclear explosion in Pakistan," he said.