A Heartbeat Away Read Online Free PDF Page A

information which had value from that which did not.
    Her aide, Leland Gladstone, was a badger on any task. He needed to search out other coughers in the chamber and figure out where they had been sitting during the little explosions. Child’s play for the man who would have been her chief of staff in the White House, and who still might have a shot at the position if things went her way.
    Ellis then turned her attention to the more pressing matter at hand. Something tremendous had just occurred inside the House Chamber— her chamber, she might remind Allaire. Election opponents or not, the speaker of the house should have been a part of any closed-door briefing.
    She rose and smoothed out the creases of her form-fitting black skirt. She was a trim, attractive brunette, who had once been the homecoming queen at Mississippi State. Careful not to call excess attention to herself, she approached the president, who had his back turned to her.
    “Mr. President, excuse me?”
    Allaire continued his exchange with Gary Salitas.
    “Mr. President, can you give me some idea what’s going on?”
    Allaire either ignored the question or simply did not hear it over the swirling commotion. Ellis felt a rush of anger, which she quickly parried. She was not accustomed to being ignored by anyone, the president included. Allaire continued on, as if unaware of her presence, now speaking in a hushed voice to his chief Secret Service agent, Sean O’Neil. Ellis strained to pick up some words, but could not.
    “Mr. President, would you like me to join the team for the briefing?” she said, louder than before.
    This time, Allaire turned.
    “Ursula. I’m glad to see you. Are you okay?”
    “Yes, yes, I’m fine. Thank you. But I’d like to participate in the briefing, Mr. President.… That is if you need me.”
    “No. I need your leadership here in the chamber. I’ll keep you informed as things develop.”
    Which means you won’t tell me jack shit, Ellis thought.
    Allaire had turned and resumed his dialogue with O’Neil.
    Ellis stood behind the president, burning with hatred.
    “You okay?”
    Gladstone had materialized beside her. Thin and dark haired, with ice blue eyes that at times gave Ellis the shivers, the man embodied what every congressional leader sought in an aide—charm, good looks, and a wobbly moral compass.
    Ellis led him away from Allaire and the others.
    “I’m POed,” she said finally. “How should I be?”
    Gladstone patted his jacket pocket.
    “Well, I assumed you would want the location of the explosions. So far I’ve pinpointed seven of what looks like a total of fifteen or sixteen broken glass containers. I should have the rest of them in a little while. Then, assuming you want me to, I’ll start filling in the seats around them.”
    “Absolutely. As usual, you are well ahead of the game.”
    “From what I can tell so far, there’s no pattern.”
    “There’s always a pattern, dear Leland. Sometimes not so obvious, but there’s always a pattern to everything. Finish filling in that seating chart, but keep your two-way radio handy. Until this situation is resolved and we are all outside waltzing down Pennsylvania Avenue, we’re going to be mighty busy.”
    The speaker’s aide headed toward the gallery while Ellis maintained her position not far from where Jim Allaire was about to retreat for the meeting with his group of sycophants. The discomfort on the man’s face was a tonic. She started imagining herself sparring with him, boxing gloves on, bobbing and weaving, searching for an opening. What she needed most now, to inflict some real damage, was information. And as the president turned to go, she realized where she could find it.
    Quickly moving to the right side of the group, she slid her hand around Sean O’Neil’s arm and pulled him back toward her.
    “I don’t have time to talk, Madam Speaker,” he said. “The president needs me.”
    “If I need you, Sean, and I do, you will make time