Born to Run

Chapter 18

A sweet, floral aroma rose from the White House coffee mug.

“Jamaica Mountain Grown,” said President Keyes in a tortured Caribbean accent. “Cool runnin’, mon. Harry? Frank? Join me?”

The president’s relaxed demeanor belied the fact that this was no routine update from Secret Service Agent Frank Madera, former head of protection for Vice President Grayson. The meeting was called-rather, demanded-by Harry Swyteck, and the three men were in the Treaty Room, the president’s personal office adjacent to the Lincoln bedroom in the White House residence. President Keyes sat in a big leather chair with his feet up on the Treaty Table, a magnificent Victorian desk originally used as a cabinet meeting table.

“Love some,” said Agent Madera.

The president poured another cup from the French press. “Harry?”

“It’s midnight, sir. One more cup of joe and I’ll be awake till dawn.”

“Oh, come on. I can get you any bean you want.”

Coffee beans were to the Keyes administration what jelly beans had been to the Reagan White House. Harry could scarcely say no. “Sure, why not.”

The president rang the kitchen on the intercom. “James, the governor wants a cup of joe.”

“What shall it be this time, sir?”

He flashed a boyish grin, as if matching up beans with guests made his presidential day. “What’s the one from Indonesia that those little tree-climbing marsupials can’t digest and the bean pickers gather up off the ground after the critters crap them out?”

“Kopi Luwak, sir?”

“That’s it. Send up a whole pot.”

“Right away, sir.”

He switched off the intercom. “You’re going to love this, Harry. Has sort of an earthy body with a hint of chocolate. Unusual aroma, however.”

“Imagine that.”

“Some people call it crappy Luwak because-”

“Enough with the coffee,” said Harry.

The tone took the president by surprise. “Maybe you’d prefer decaf,” he said.

“Sorry, sir. But frankly I’ve been on edge ever since my son got that e-mail from someone who claims he can bring down the president.”

“And as I told you, those things happen about once a week.”

“I don’t doubt that,” said Harry. “But today I heard disturbing things about a former White House intern who recently turned up dead. In my eyes, this is critical. As I told you on the phone, I need some answers about Chloe Sparks.”

“That’s why I have Frank here,” said the president. “He can tell you everything you need to know about her.”

Harry’s gaze shifted to Agent Madera.

A fifteen-year Secret Service veteran, Special Agent Frank Madera began his career in the Washington field office. People had been telling him since high school that he looked like a Secret Service agent-six feet two inches tall, athletic build, stoic but handsome facade-but he would have liked to think it was his exemplary work on complex counterfeiting investigations thatn had earned him a promotion to the presidential protection division. His first major assignment was to protect president-elect Keyes, and by inauguration day Madera found himself standing within arm’s length of the new chief executive. He became the president’s most trusted agent, which precipitated a few questions when, thirteen months into his first term, the president suddenly had him reassigned to the vice president.

“Fire away,” said Agent Madera.

“Let’s start with the reason you were reassigned to Phil’s security detail.”

“That woman-Chloe Sparks-was unstable. After she was fired for drug possession, we tagged her as a potential stalker.”

The president interrupted, as if propelled to fill in the blanks. “Frank was seen as the best man to contain the threat.”

“That sounds like a crock,” said Harry.

“What did you just say?”

“Pardon my tone,” said Harry, “but I need you to stop talking to me as if I were an idiot. I’ve heard enough to know that it had less to do with stalking and more to do with the vice president’s libido.”

The president’s expression soured, but Harry’s gaze was cutting across the room like a laser beam, breaking down the wall of misinformation.

“All right,” said the president. “Phil was being Phil. Chloe Sparks made overtures to him-we called it stalking-but Phil didn’t see her advances as, shall we say, unwelcome as we did. That’s why Frank was reassigned to the vice president’s detail. To stop Phil from meeting with her.”

“I knew Phil as well as you did,” said Harry. “Once he made up his mind, no one could stop him from doing what he wanted to do. Not even the president.”

There was silence in the room, Harry’s words wrapping around the president like the coldest of realities.

“I want the truth,” said Harry, “or I’m withdrawing my name from consideration.”

“Harry, come on now.”

“I mean it,” said Harry. “The truth about Chloe Sparks. Or I’m out.”

He didn’t appear to be bluffing. The president blinked.

“All right,” he said with a sigh. “Frank, tell him.”

“Sir?” he said, incredulous.

“You heard me. Tell the governor why you were reassigned to Vice President Grayson.”

Agent Madera seemed uncomfortable with the task, but he never refused a direct order from the president-at least not in front of a third party. “It was my job to make sure that whatever the vice president did and however he did it, national security interests would not be compromised.”

“That’s a nice spin,” said Harry. “But what does it mean?”

The president said, “You said it yourself, Harry. I couldn’t stop Phil. But if we left it up to the vice president to pursue her, he was bound to end up like every other man who cheats on his wife. He’d get caught, eventually.”

Harry said, “So Agent Madera became the Secret Service facilitator-like JFK and Marilyn Monroe?”

“When it comes to sex,” the president said dryly, “few things are without precedent in Washington.”

“Are you telling me that Chloe Sparks was with Phil Grayson on the night of his death?”

The Secret Service agent took the question, even though it was directed to the president. “The good news is that the answer to that question is no.”

“Then why was he pumped full of ED medication?”

“How did you know that?”

“Jack told me,” said Harry.

“Your son has been busy, I see.”

“He has it on good authority that the toxicology report is going to show that Vice President Grayson was full of ED medication at the time of his death. So I want the whole truth: Was she with him in Florida?”

The president looked at his Secret Service agent and said, “Frank, the whole truth, for our distinguished nominee.”

“Yes, sir,” he said. “She was supposed to come, but it didn’t work out. Too much media surrounding the vice president’s visit to Florida, too many guests around who might see something they shouldn’t see.”

“But he took the ED medication anyway?” said Harry.

“It was a time-released dosage, good for thirty-six hours. I presume he wanted to be ready whenever she showed up.”

Harry fell quiet again, but he seemed satisfied that he was finally getting the straight dope.

“So, how do we deal with this toxicology report?” he said.

“Fortunately,” said the president, “the medical examiner doesn’t plan to release it for another week.”

“It will leak before then. We need a plan.”

The president smiled. “I like the way you say we.”

“I have no choice,” said Harry. “The media will undoubtedly feast on this. Since I was with the vice president on the night he died, I am going to spend a lot of time answering questions about something that has very little to do with my qualifications to be vice president.”

“Are you okay with that?”

Harry paused, thinking. It didn’t take long. “Here’s the way I see it. I can decline the nomination and be accused of having arranged for Phil to come to Florida and bed his former White House intern. Or I can accept the nomination, and be accused of the very same thing.”

“You’re a smart man, Harry Swyteck.”

“Or a fool for having gotten back into this game.”

“Do I take that to mean that you’re in for the long haul?”

“Only if you can assure me that putting Agent Madera on the vice president was for national security reasons, as you said, and not simply to cover up a potential scandal.”

“You have my word on that.”

The two men looked each other in the eye, and the president searched for that certain body language that said lies were unacceptable-unless they were believable.

“Then I’m still in,” said Harry. “With one caveat.”

“Name it.”

Harry turned deadly serious. “No more ticking time bombs like Chloe Sparks. No more secrets of any kind. Or not even Agent Madera will be able to stop me from kicking your ass.”

The president smiled, even though Harry didn’t.

“Fair enough, my friend.”

They shook on it, the president applying his famous double touch, shaking with his right hand while applying his left to Harry’s right shoulder.

The president said, “While we’re on the subject of security, I feel we should talk more about this anonymous e-mail Jack received. You still seem concerned about that.”

“Anyone who claims to have the power to bring down the president sounds like a nut case to me,” said Harry. “With my son on the front line, concern is probably a good word.”

“I can understand that. I know the FBI has given you assurances about Jack’s safety, but in the world of personal protection, I trust no one more than Frank. I’d like to arrange for him to be assigned to you.”

“I appreciate the gesture. But that’s not really necessary.”

“I insist. He has experience on the vice presidential side of things with Phil, so it’s an easy transition. We’ll make the reassignment first thing in the morning.” The president took one last swallow of coffee. “You look tired, Harry. Go to bed.”

“I am beat. Thank you, sir.”

Harry said good night to both the president and the new special agent in charge of vice presidential protection, and then he left through the north door. Agent Madera remained behind with the president. Neither seemed eager to be the first to speak, each waiting for the other’s reaction.

“You told him too much,” said Madera.

“He’ll be fine. Harry Swyteck wants to be vice president in a bad way. Much more than he lets on. Now that he’s in the loop about Chloe Sparks and Phil Grayson, he has no choice but to toe the line.”

“You trust him that much?”

“I do now that you’re on his security detail.”

“Nice touch, the way you couched it in terms of personal safety.”

“I’m sure he sees through that. The only question is how far he can see.”

President Keyes rose and stepped toward the window. Surrounding city lights gave the south lawn a warm glow on a cold December night. “Do you think…”

He stopped himself.

“Do I think what?” said Madera.

“I have this unsettling suspicion about his son.”

“He does seem a bit too friendly with Paulette Sparks since coming to Washington.”

“Not to mention Marilyn and Elizabeth Grayson.”

“All on the heels of that e-mail.”

The president leaned against the window frame, his back to Agent Madera as he spoke to his reflection in the pane of bullet-resistant glass. “It could be paranoia on my part. But I’m beginning to wonder if Jack has already figured out that Phil Grayson having sex with an intern has absolutely nothing to do with the power to bring down the Keyes administration.”

“That would be our worst fear,” said Madera.

He shook his head, speaking in a solemn voice. “You want to know my worst fear, Frank?”

Agent Madera did not respond.

President Keyes was a student of history, and in times of stress, snippets of White House history seemed to rise up from the floorboards to haunt him.

“Did you know that President Garfield was brought to this very room after he was shot in the summer of 1881?”

“Is that what keeps you up at night, assassination?”

“Of sorts,” he said, turning to face him. “My worst fear is that the entire world is about to know what the Greek knows. And there’s nothing I can do to stop it.”