When she hung up the phone, she went into the bathroom and said Chiddy’s name, over and over. No answer. No response at all! All she’d ever had to do was speak, but now they were off somewhere, or everywhere, trying to locate the predators.
“My son’s been abducted,” she said. “Also a girl that was mistaken for my daughter!”
No sign that he’d heard her. Lord, Lord. Now what? She stepped back into the bedroom and the phone rang. Chad, saying he’d just learned about what happened in California.
“Chad, for heaven’s sake, I know! Angelica just told me.”
“This girl they took? Do you know who that was?”
“They thought it was Angelica!”
“You know why?”
“They want them for bait,” she cried. “To lure me out where they can get at me.” She pressed her forehead with her free hand, trying to keep it from exploding. “The predators wouldn’t have targeted the children on their own, so someone put them up to it. Probably Morse because he wants to talk to the intermediary.”
“That’s what his press release says,” growled Chad.
She cried, “Well, dammit, better in public than in some cellar somewhere. Morse wants to get at me, so why don’t we let him! Except for my longing for anonymity, I’ve got no reason to hide!”
“Volunteering to testify could be a good play,” said Chad, thoughtfully. “I’ll see what the powers that be have to say about that.”
“Listen,” Benita said, struggling to remain calm. “Morse might be doing this because he’s expecting the president to duck or dodge on the subject of my whereabouts. Then Morse himself could haul me in, hoping I’ll say something really damaging. Like … I was put up to this whole thing by the Chinese. Or the press and I have been having this affair ever since I came to Washington. Or something equally ridiculous. That’s what he really wants, to make political hay out of the situation . . .”
“That’s scary.”
“It’s not the worst. If he’s using the predators, maybe he can even be sure that I’ll say what he wants me to. Either they can make me do it, or they can hold the kids’ lives as hostages until I do it.”
“But you’d be willing to appear in order to subvert that.”
“Right. I’ll agree right now to appear before the committee Monday. Let the president announce that fact! He should announce it tonight or tomorrow, so it can get onto the news as soon as possible!”
“What about your son?”
“Somebody should get word to McVane, privately, that I expect my family to be released. Or that he’ll be held responsible for the two of them, or something!”
“But the girl isn’t your family.”
“She’s somebody’s family,” Benita snapped. “Angelica would be in their clutches right now if they hadn’t made a mistake. I asked her to ask the FBI man who’s guarding her to take her to a hotel for tonight and let you know where she is.”
“I’ll alert the powers that be,” said Chad. “Including the president.”
Benita called Simon at home to tell him a family emergency had come up, and she would have to take Monday off. Since she’d worked overtime on several evenings, she actually had the time coming.
He sighed. “Someday you’ll tell me what’s going on, won’t you, Benita?”
“Someday, Simon. If I ever figure it out.”
Senator Byron Morse—FRIDAY
The same evening, Senator Morse came home to find a note from Lupe saying that her mother had broken her wrist and that Lupe was driving to Baltimore to spend a day or two with Mama to reassure herself that Mama was all right. All in all, it suited the senator to spend a quiet evening at home. The last few days had been hectic. Predators picking off American citizens was not a precedent he wanted to set, but in this case the end justified the means. Once he got his hands on the intermediary, nobody would press him too much as to how he’d done it, and he had no doubt he could get something out of her, whether or not it led them to the envoys, that would be useful in damaging the administration!