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If I don’t answer, I’m dead asleep.
Should I just call in the morning, then?
That might be better. We had dinner with S&N and just got home. I’m so tired, I might fall over.
Don’t do that. Get some rest. Make sure you set the alarm.
Already done.
Good. Sweet dreams.
You, too!
He wanted to tell her what a bitch Nick’s mother was, but he’d never put that in writing. But what a piece of work she was. Of course, he’d heard the stories about her and had seen her in action during several TV interviews that’d cast a negative light on the son she claimed to love with all her heart. Meeting her in person had confirmed that she was every bit as vile as she seemed. No one needed a mother like her.
It made him sad for Nick to have to deal with her shit right when he was beginning to make inroads in convincing the American people to accept him as their president.
From what their investigators had unearthed, Nicoletta had been a busy, busy lady, dabbling in everything from prostitution to drugs to money laundering. And that was just what they’d found thus far. He’d be surprised if she didn’t spend a big chunk of time in prison.
The president’s mother.
It was almost too much to be believed.
His phone rang with a call from Shelby.
“Avery!”
“What’s wrong?”
“I think there’s someone in the house.”
His entire body went rigid with shock and fear. “Shelby!”
He heard a struggle, Noah’s sharp cry, and then the line went dead. For a second, he couldn’t remember what he was supposed to do at a time like this, and then his training kicked in. He called his deputy, George Terrell.
“Hey, what’s up?”
“My… My family, George. Shelby called to say someone was in the house.”
“I’m on my way, and I’ll call the cavalry.”
“George.”
“I’m on it, Avery. Hang tight. I’ll be back to you as soon as I know anything.”
After the call ended, Avery stood in the generic interrogation room that looked like all the others he’d seen during his career. A million things ran through his mind as he contemplated what was happening at home. Had someone come for him and been disappointed to find only his wife and son? Would he ever see them again?
He’d never felt that kind of panic as he ran from the police station, past the astonished officers he’d recently met and spoken with. He jumped into the government car that had met him at the tarmac and ordered them to get him to the airport as fast as possible. On the way, he kept trying to call Shelby, but the phone just rang and rang.
When he ran toward the government plane that had ferried him to Cleveland earlier, the two Air Force pilots who’d flown him there chased after him. He wasn’t sure where they’d come from, but he didn’t have time to care.
“Agent Hill?”
“I need to get back to DC right away.”
“Yes, sir. We’ll have you airborne as soon as possible.”
His heart raced from anxiety and exertion as he tried to call Shelby again. The call went straight to voice mail.
