“I think you really do care. You do a lot of good.”
Fiske shook his head, his eyes glimmering. “I’m not some rich, brilliant white attorney running around nobly saving the little Enis’s of the world. And it took a lost kid blowing up my insides with a cannon to make me even give a damn. How many people do you think really care?”
“You can’t be that cynical, can you?”
Fiske stared at her a moment before answering. “Actually, I’m the most hopeful cynic you’ll ever meet.”
CHAPTER FIFTY-FIVE
* * *
You did the right thing, Beth. As much as it hurts. I still can’t believe it about Sara, though.” Jordan Knight shook his head. They were in the back seat of his government limousine, which was threading its way through bumper-to-bumper traffic toward their Watergate apartment. “Maybe she just cracked. The pressures are enormous.”
“I know,” Elizabeth Knight said quietly.
“It all seems so bizarre. A clerk steals an appeal. Sara knows about it but keeps quiet. The clerk is then murdered. Then the clerk’s brother comes under suspicion. John Fiske just doesn’t strike me as the murderous type.”
“He doesn’t strike me that way either.” Her discussion with John Fiske had only deepened her fears.
Jordan Knight patted his wife’s hand. “I’ve checked on Chandler and McKenna. Both are rock-solid. McKenna has an excellent reputation at the Bureau. If anybody can solve this thing, I think those two can.”
“I find Warren McKenna rude and obnoxious.”
“Well, in his line of work I suppose he sometimes has to be,” he pointed out.
“That’s not all. There’s just something about him. He’s so intense, but he almost seems to be” — she paused, searching for the right word — “playacting.”
“In the middle of a murder investigation?”
“I know it sounds crazy, but it’s just how I feel.”
The senator shrugged and stroked his chin thoughtfully. “I’ve always said a woman’s intuition is worth more than a man’s best judgment. I guess in this town we’re all on a stage. Sometimes one does grow tired of it.”
She eyed him closely. “The New Mexico ranch beckons?”
“I’ve got a dozen years on you, Beth. Every day becomes a little more precious.”
“It’s not like we’re not together.”
“Time together in D.C. is not really the same. We’re both so busy here.”
“My appointment to the Court is a lifetime one, Jordan.”
“I just don’t want you to have any regrets. And I’m trying my best not to have any.”
They both fell silent and looked out the window as the car traveled along Virginia Avenue.
“I heard you and Ramsey went at it tooth and claw today. Do you think you have a chance?”
“Jordan, you know I don’t feel comfortable talking to you about these things.”
Jordan reddened. “That’s one thing I hate about this town, and our jobs. Government should not interfere in the covenant of marriage.”
“Funny talk, coming from a politician.”
Jordan laughed deeply. “Well, as a politician, I have to get up on the damn soapbox every now and then, don’t I?” He stopped and took her hand. “I appreciate your going forward with the dinner for Kenneth. You took some heat for it, I know.”
Elizabeth shrugged. “Harold takes any opportunity, no matter how trivial, to tweak me, Jordan. I’ve built up a very strong resistance.” She gave him a kiss on the cheek, while he lovingly stroked her hair.
“We really have prevailed, despite all the odds, haven’t we? We have a nice life, don’t we?”
“We have a wonderful life, Jordan.” She kissed him again and he put a protective arm around her.
“I say tonight we cancel all of our appointments and just stay home. Have some dinner, watch a movie. And talk. We don’t get to do that much anymore.”
“I’m afraid I won’t be good company.”
Jordan squeezed her tightly. “You’re always good company, Beth. Always.”
When the Knights arrived at their apartment, Mary, their housekeeper, handed a phone message to Elizabeth. A curious expression crossed her face as she looked at the name on the paper.
Jordan appeared in the hallway rubbing his hands together. He looked at Mary. “I hope you have something nice planned for dinner.”