Неизвестный - 06. Honor Under Siege

“That’s wonderful. Thank you.”

Blair closed the door without answering. As usual after leaving Lucinda, she was never certain if she’d won or lost the skirmish. She walked briskly past Paula and Felicia and pulled out her cell phone.

“How’s it going?” she asked when Cam answered.

“I’m going to be here most of the day. You?”

“Bloodied, but unbowed.”

Cam laughed. “What about the rest of your plans? Any changes?”

“No. And you don’t have to say it. I’ll be careful.”

“Thanks. I’ll see you later, then.”

“All right. I love you.”

“I love you too.”

Blair closed her phone, smiling. She wondered what the national security chief thought about that.

Chapter Eight

“Are you ready for some serious shopping?” Blair held up Diane’s coat. She hoped that the diversion would take Diane’s mind off Valerie, but knew it wouldn’t. She’d been there too many times herself, not knowing what was happening with someone she loved, not being able to help or protect them.

Diane smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes. Her smooth, milky complexion was even paler than normal, and lines of tension marred the sleek planes of her face. Diane was ordinarily so poised and kept her emotions so tightly reined that to see those cracks in her composure made Blair’s heart ache. It also made her angry. Angry at Valerie for involving Diane when she must have known something like this could happen, at the political system that so effortlessly ignored the human consequences of its policies, and even at herself, for not knowing the best way to help her friend.

“The Shops at Georgetown?” Blair suggested.

“Let’s start on M Street and finish up inside.”

“Done.” Blair grinned when she heard Stark muffle a groan. Many of the trendy boutiques on M Street in Georgetown fronted a portion of the four-story mall that housed over seventy shops and restaurants. It was the best shopping in DC. She hooked her arm through Diane’s as they stepped out into the foyer and pushed the button for the elevator. “I’m glad you’re here.”

“So am I,” Diane whispered.

Paula slid into the elevator next to them. “I don’t suppose you could think of a slightly less crowded place for your retail therapy?”

“What, and take all the fun out of it?” Blair feigned shock. She knew from experience that her security agents hated it when she went to large, crowded places where it was impossible for them to set up advance surveillance. But if she let that dictate her movements, she’d never go to a movie or a street fair or a shopping mall. Until the recent attacks, outings such as this had been more an inconvenience than a serious security issue, and that was all the more reason for her not to change her behavior now.

“Fun,” Paula muttered. “More like hell.”

“You never know.” Blair laughed as the elevator opened and they all stepped out. “You might end up enjoying it.”

Paula, busy alerting Hara in the vehicle idling at the curb that they were exiting, didn’t bother to object.

“Oh, goody,” Blair said as Felicia moved up beside her, “girls’ day out.”

“We didn’t think Greg would mind if I took his shift this afternoon,” Felicia said. “Hi Diane.”

“It’s good to see you again,” Diane said, as she climbed into the rear of the Suburban next to Blair. “How’s Mac doing?”

Felicia’s smile widened. “He’s out of the hospital and doing very well.”

“I suppose he’s chafing to get back to work.”

“He’s like the rest of us. If we’re not working, we tend to get into trouble.” Felicia glanced at Stark. “I know he misses being part of the team.”

“The team misses him,” Stark said.

“Hopefully, he’ll be back soon,” Blair said, wondering if Mac would resume his duties as secondin-command and communications officer. That would be up to Paula now. Felicia had taken over Mac’s responsibilities when he was shot during the assassination attempt at the Aerie, but her real expertise was intelligence and data analysis. “Tell him I said hi.”

“I will,” Felicia replied. “Where are we headed?”

“Georgetown Park,” Paula said with a grimace.

Felicia’s eyes widened. “Oh, I should be getting hazard pay. To be surrounded by all that trendy glitter and not be able to window shop. That’s harsh.”

Blair laughed. Even though she loved Mac and enjoyed Greg Wozinski’s dry humor and subtle sensitivity, if she had to have close surveillance twenty-four hours a day, it was so nice to have female agents. They understood about shopping.

Nevertheless, three hours later, Blair found that even Paula was as grumpy as any of the male agents who had ever accompanied her on a shopping excursion.

“I’m just going to try on these dresses.” She gave Paula a winning smile. “I need something for the fundraiser this weekend.”

“It feels like divine punishment that we’re shopping at a place called the White House,” Paula said with a sigh.

“Maybe it’s cosmic destiny,” Blair said as she carried another stack of clothing into the dressing room. “If you see Diane, tell her I’m in here. She went to check out the shoes.”

“Fine. Great.” Paula turned her back to the dressing room door and folded her arms. It wasn’t that she minded shopping so much, she just didn’t like to do it for hours on end. And when she went shopping, it was always with something specific in mind—a new pair of shoes or a suit to replace one that got torn up or soiled during work. It was never just to check out the latest styles. She scanned the dress department, automatically reviewing the faces to see if any seemed familiar from other stores, other departments. She didn’t recognize anyone and was comfortable that they were not being followed. Felicia, posted in the aisle between the dresses and accessories, was doing the same thing. Hara had drawn the short straw and stayed with the vehicle.

Idly, Paula watched a woman pull a white halter dress from a rack and hold it up in front of her body. The unexpected mental picture of Renée in that dress stirred a hum of arousal in the pit of her stomach, and she swiftly looked away. Felicia was right. Shopping was dangerous duty.

Diane lifted a Louboutin black lace and suede pump with a peep toe, thinking it would go well with the dress she was planning to wear to the fundraiser Blair had invited her to. Ordinarily, she would have looked forward to a gala event, but it was hard to be excited about a night out now.

“Would you like to try those on?” a saleswoman asked with a polite smile.

“Yes I—” Diane caught her breath as she glimpsed a figure slip from view on the opposite side of the room. She went on hurriedly, “Not just yet, thank you.”

“Of course. Just let me know.”

Diane dropped the shoe back onto the rack and walked quickly across the seating area toward the sign marked exit. She pushed through the fire door and into the stairwell.

Valerie stood on the landing.

“Oh my God,” Diane breathed. She extended one hand, but didn’t touch her. “I wasn’t sure—I thought I saw you once earlier, but I told myself it was just my imagination.” She let her fingertips drift down Valerie’s cheek. “It is you, isn’t it?”

Valerie caught Diane’s hand and kissed her palm. “Yes.”

“How did you know where I was?”

“I called the gallery and asked for you. They know me as an art dealer, remember?” Valerie kept hold of Diane’s hand, stroking the top with her thumb. “They told me you were in DC, and it wasn’t hard for me to figure out where.”

“But how did you know I would be here?”

Valerie smiled softly. “The Suburban is hard to miss. I’ve just been waiting until you weren’t with Blair.”