The Best Laid Plans

"Where?"

"At the Monroe Arms."

"I don't know why you're here, Miss Evans," Jeremy Robinson protested. "Lonergan promised me that if I cooperated, there would be no bad publicity about the hotel."

"Mr. Robinson, Mr. Lonergan is dead. All I want is some information."

Jeremy Robinson shook his head. "I don't know anything."

"What did you tell Mr. Lonergan?"

Robinson sighed. "He asked for the address of Carl Gorman, my hotel clerk. I gave it to him."

"Did Mr. Lonergan go to see him?"

"I have no idea."

"I'd like to have that address."

Jeremy looked at her a moment and sighed again. "Very well. He lives with his sister."

A few minutes later, Dana had the address in her hands. Robinson watched her leave the hotel, and then he picked up the phone and dialed the White House.

He wondered why they were so interested in the case.

Chris Colby, the department's computer expert, walked into Detective Reese's office holding a floppy disk. He was almost trembling with excitement.

"What did you get?" Detective Reese asked.

Chris Colby took a deep breath. "This is going to blow your mind. Here's a printout of what's on this disk."

Detective Reese started to read it and an incredulous expression came over his face. "Mother of God," he said. "I've got to show this to Captain Miller."

When Captain Otto Miller finished reading the printout, he looked up at Detective Reese. "I - I've never seen anything like this."

"There's never been anything like this," Detective Reese said. "What the hell do we do with it?"

Captain Miller said slowly, "I think we have to turn it over to the U.S. attorney general."

They were gathered in the office of Attorney General Barbara Gatlin. With her in the room were Scott Brandon, director of the FBI; Dean Bergstrom, the Washington chief of police; James Frisch, director of Central Intelligence, and Edgar Graves, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.

Barbara Gatlin said, "I asked you gentlemen here because I need your advice. Frankly, I don't know how to proceed. We have a situation that's unique. Frank Lonergan was a reporter for the Washington Tribune. When he was killed, he was in the middle of an investigation into the murder of Chloe Houston. I'm going to read you a transcript of what the police found on a disk in Lonergan's car." She looked at the printout in her hand and started to read aloud:

"'I have reason to believe that the President of the United States has committed at least one murder and is involved in four more - '"

"What?" Scott Brandon exclaimed.

"Let me go on." She started to read again.

" 'I obtained the following information from various sources. Leslie Stewart, the owner and publisher of the Washington Tribune, is willing to swear that at one time, Oliver Russell tried to persuade her to take an illegal drug called liquid Ecstasy.

"'When Oliver Russell was running for governor of Kentucky, Lisa Burnette, a legal secretary who worked in the state capitol building, threatened to sue him for sexual harassment. Russell told a colleague that he would have a talk with her. The next day, Lisa Burnette's body was found in the Kentucky River. She had died of an overdose of liquid Ecstasy.

"'Then-Governor Oliver Russell's secretary, Miriam Friedland, was found unconscious on a park bench late at night. She was in a coma induced by liquid Ecstasy. The police were waiting for her to come out of it so that they could find out who had given it to her. Oliver Russell telephoned the hospital and suggested they take her off life support. Miriam Friedland passed away without coming out of the coma.

"'Chloe Houston was killed by an overdose of liquid Ecstasy. I learned that on the night of her death, there was a phone call from the hotel suite to the White House. When I looked at the hotel telephone records to check it, the page for that day was missing.

"'I was told that the president was at a meeting that night, but I discovered that the meeting had been canceled. No one knows the president's whereabouts that night.

"'Paul Yerby was detained as a suspect in Chloe Houston's murder. Captain Otto Miller told the White House where Yerby was being held. The following morning Yerby was found hanging in his cell. He was supposed to have hanged himself with his belt, but when I looked through his effects at the police station, his belt was there, intact.

"'Through a friend at the FBI, I learned that a blackmail letter had been sent to the White House. President Russell asked the FBI to check it for fingerprints. Most of the letter had been whited out, but with the aid of an infrascope, the FBI was able to decipher it.

"'The fingerprints on the letter were identified as belonging to Carl Gorman, a clerk at the Monroe Arms Hotel, probably the only one who might have known the identity of the person who booked the suite where the girl was killed. He was away at a fishing camp, but his name had been revealed to the White House. When I arrived at the camp, Gorman had been killed in what appeared to be an accident.

"'There are too many connections for these killings to be a coincidence. I am going ahead with the investigation, but frankly, I'm frightened. At least I have this on the record, in case anything should happen to me. More later.'"

"My God," James Frisch exclaimed. "This is...horrible."

"I can't believe it."

Attorney General Gatlin said, "Lonergan believed it, and he was probably killed to stop this information from getting out."

"What do we do now?" Chief Justice Graves asked. "How do you ask the President of the United States if he's killed half a dozen people?"

"That's a good question. Impeach him? Arrest him? Throw him in jail?"

"Before we do anything," Attorney General Gatlin said, "I think we have to present this transcript to the president himself and give him an opportunity to comment."

There were murmurs of agreement.

"In the meantime, I'll have a warrant for his arrest drawn up. Just in case it's necessary."

One of the men in the room was thinking, I've got to inform Peter Tager.

Peter Tager put the telephone down and sat there for a long time, thinking about what he had just been told. He rose and walked down the corridor to Deborah Kanner's office.

"I have to see the president."

"He's in a meeting. If you can - "

"I have to see him now, Deborah. It's urgent"

She saw the look on his face. "Just a moment" She picked up the telephone and pressed a button. "I'm sorry to interrupt you, Mr. President Mr. Tager is here, and he said he must see you." She listened a moment. "Thank you." She replaced the receiver and turned to Tager. "Five minutes."

Five minutes later, Peter Tager was alone in the Oval Office with President Russell.

"What's so important, Peter?"

Tager took a deep breath. "The Attorney General and the FBI think you're involved in six murders."

Oliver smiled. "This is some kind of joke..."

"Is it? They're on their way here now. They believe you killed Chloe Houston and - "

Oliver had gone pale. "What?"

"I know - it's crazy. From what I was told, all the evidence is circumstantial. I'm sure you can explain where you were the night the girl died."

Oliver was silent.

Peter Tager was waiting. "Oliver, you can explain, can't you?"

Oliver swallowed. "No. I can't."

"You have to!"

Oliver said heavily, "Peter, I need to be alone."

Peter Tager went to see Senator Davis in the Capitol.

"What is it that's so urgent, Peter?"

"It's - it's about the president."

"Yes?"

"The attorney general and the FBI think that Oliver is a murderer."

Senator Davis sat there staring at Tager. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"They're convinced Oliver's committed several murders. I got a tip from a friend at the FBI."

Tager told Senator Davis about the evidence.

When Tager was through, Senator Davis said slowly, "That dumb son of a bitch! Do you know what this means?"

"Yes, sir. It means that Oliver - "

"Fuck Oliver. I've spent years putting him where I want him. I don't care what happens to him. I'm in control now, Peter. I have the power. I'm not going to let Oliver's stupidity take it away from me. I'm not going to let anyone take it away from me!"

"I don't see what you can - "

"You said the evidence was all circumstantial?"

"That's right. I was told they have no hard proof. But he has no alibi."

"Where is the president now?"

"In the Oval Office."

"I've got some good news for him," Senator Todd Davis said.

Senator Davis was facing Oliver in the Oval Office. "I've been hearing some very disturbing things, Oliver. It's insane, of course. I don't know how anyone could possibly think you - "

"I don't, either. I haven't done anything wrong, Todd."

"I'm sure you haven't. But if word got out that you were even suspected of horrible crimes like these - well, you can see how this would affect the office, can't you?"