Vince Flynn - Consent To Kill

Kennedy wondered if this was about Rapp-if Ross was punishing her for what he'd done. She had not let on that she knew about their confrontation, but it was safe to assume Ross thought she knew all the details. What had started off as a decent enough working relationship was suddenly not looking so good. Whether this was exacerbated by Rapp or inevitable she did not know, but she was beginning to seriously wonder if Ross was the wrong man for the job.

Kennedy had been tempted to force Rapp to accompany her as a form of punishment, but he had gotten out of it. He'd shown up at her office limping earlier in the day and told her he was going in to have his knee operated on in the morning. She asked how serious it was and he shrugged it off with a mumbled answer. After a few more questions she found out they were going to scope his knee and he'd be back at work in two days. That didn't sound like such a big deal, so she pressed him further and found out the procedure was only a short-term solution. The doctor told him within five years he'd need to undergo knee replacement surgery. Kennedy was surprised by her own lack of concern for his health. On the contrary, she was pleased to hear that he would finally have to slow down. With any luck, she could get him behind a desk soon and keep him there.

Ross entered the room in a manner befitting the president himself. He was followed by the ever-present Jonathan Gordon; two female staffers, whom Kennedy only vaguely recognized; and four immense Secret Service agents. Kennedy looked across the room at Secretary of State Berg and noted that not a single member of her security detail was in the room. They were in one of the most secure buildings in Washington, after all. There was no reason, other than hubris, to have the agents so close to their protectee.

Kennedy stood in the corner and continued to listen to the two State Department officials. She was in no rush to talk to Ross so she waited for him to make his way over. Ross was shaking hands and slapping backs. Kennedy was amused to read the lips of a senator who asked Ross, "What are you doing here?"

Very good question, Kennedy thought to herself. She looked at her watch and noted that he had told her to be on time, and yet he had arrived thirty minutes late.

Ross made his way over to Secretary Berg and kissed her on the cheek. After a few minutes he spotted Kennedy and waved her over.

Kennedy excused herself and made her way through the crowd. "Secretary Berg." Kennedy extended her hand. "How are you?"

"Well, Irene, and you?"

"Just fine, thank you," answered Kennedy. She and the secretary of state were often at odds philosophically, but had a good working relationship.

"I didn't expect to see you here," Ross said, thinking he was funny.

"I thought I'd crash the party," Kennedy replied with a half smile.

"I'm glad you came," said the secretary of state quickly. She squeezed Kennedy's arm and gave her a reassuring nod.

Kennedy knew exactly what she meant. The Saudis had a way of making women feel very uncomfortable. To the old guard of Saudi men a woman's place was at home, taking care of the children and running the household. It was inappropriate to look a woman in the eye or address her directly. This made for some awkward moments when powerful women like Berg and Kennedy were placed in the same room with an all-male delegation of Saudis. In Kennedy's twenty plus years in the intelligence business things had gotten much better. The next generation of Saudis, the ones who had been educated at universities in Europe and America, were far more accepting of women, at least when dealing with foreign governments. Back in Saudi Arabia, though, the great divide between the sexes was still alive and flourishing.

One of Secretary Berg's assistants came up and informed her that the Saudi foreign minister had entered the building. Berg excused herself and left Ross and Kennedy to take up her position in the diplomatic receiving line. Ross grabbed Kennedy by the elbow and pointed toward the far corner of the room. They wove their way through the crowd with Ross's bodyguards shadowing them as they went. Kennedy thought the security must have looked ridiculous and was relieved when Ross finally gave the detail leader a signal to stand down.

Ross stood with his back to the room, facing Kennedy. Jonathan Gordon stepped from his shadow and took up position beside his boss. Ross smoothed his light-blue-and-silver-striped tie with the palm of his right hand and then adjusted his trousers before placing his hands on his lips. The director of National Intelligence looked at her, tilted his head slightly, as if he was going to say something, and then stopped.

Kennedy had a pretty good idea what was on his mind, so she said, "Mark, about you and Mitch, and what happened the other day…"

Ross cut her off. "You don't need to say a word. It's water under the bridge."

Kennedy glanced at Gordon, whose expression said different. "I just want you to know I don't operate that way," Kennedy said to Ross. "If one of my people has a problem with you they need to come to me first. Mitch went behind my back, and I'm not happy about it."

Ross considered his reply. "I know Mitch has sacrificed a great deal for this country, but a lot of people worry he's uncontrollable. That it's just a matter of time before he does something that really embarrasses the Agency. Neither of us want that to happen."

"No, we don't," Kennedy said honestly.

"Then I suggest you keep him on a short leash."

Kennedy nodded. She couldn't really tell him that there were as many or more people in Washington who wanted to simply let Rapp loose.

"And this Coleman guy. I wasn't born yesterday. That guy spells trouble."

Kennedy said nothing.

"I'm going to do my best," continued Ross, "to stay out of the day-to-day business of the Agency. I have a lot of faith in you, you've done a great job so far, but I worry that you have a blind spot where Rapp is concerned. I've already talked to the president about this and he shares my concerns."

Kennedy listened to the words without showing an ounce of emotion. Inside, however, her stomach started to churn.

"We've decided," said Ross, "to keep a close eye on the situation. If Rapp can't start following orders and respect the chain of command, some changes might have to be made."

"You talked to the president about this?" Kennedy wanted to be clear on this point. One of the classic power plays in Washington was to drop the president's name to bolster your position.

"Yes, and he's been worried for some time about it."

Kennedy looked Ross in the eye and wondered if he had bothered to tell the president what had caused Mitch to become so insolent. She doubted that Ross had told him about his investigation of Scott Coleman and his company. Scott Coleman, a man who had been the commander of SEAL Team 6 and who had won both the Silver Star and the Navy Cross. A man who after leaving the navy had conducted dozens of black ops, a handful that the president himself had authorized.

Where Rapp was quick to anger, Kennedy was the opposite. She didn't like any of this. She hated the fact that Ross was meddling in such delicate matters, and it really irked her that he had already begun politicking with the president. In spite of those emotions she remained calm.

She gave Ross a slight nod and said, "I'll have another talk with him." And with the president, she thought to herself.

"Good." Ross pivoted so he was standing next to her. Gordon moved into position on her left. The two men had her bracketed. Talking out of the side of his mouth Ross said, "You're probably wondering why I asked you to come to this reception."

"The thought has crossed my mind."

"The Saudis are the key."

Kennedy looked across the room to the diplomatic receiving line. The foreign minister and his lengthy entourage had just entered the room. Kennedy had noticed that Ross liked to make statements like "The Saudis are the key" and then add nothing more. His aim was to get you to ask him why, so that he could then dispense his wisdom. Kennedy, a professional spy from the old school, was very good at keeping her mouth shut and listening.