MC Part 2 #39
Tuesday was busy for everyone, except Lois Nasen-Hedges. Agents Carpenter and Davis took possession of the ring at 7:30am, and transported it to Langley for installation in the Manleigh Cheese food truck. Lois drank coffee and cursed at the sutures in her hand.
They were itching fiercely. She reminded herself to check in with the Doctor. With all the insanity of the weekend, she’d forgotten how long they stitches were going to be left in. Like most people, she didn’t want them stuck in her flesh for a moment longer than necessary.
Tomorrow, she had to make sure that the President and First Lady were occupied. The last thing she needed was there attendance at the trumped-up food truck event.
She flipped open the manila folder on her desk—the file on Logan Manleigh, Donna Abrams, and John Frost—and decided that Ms. Abrams was too attractive for the President to approach. If it weren’t necessary to hide the ring, it wouldn’t be a problem, but for the plans to work… Well, she had to truly not know where it was.
Tol Agarutha would know if she lied to him. They’d danced that dance before, and she learned from it.
What she could do, and planned to do, was be partially honest. She didn’t know where the ring is (or would be), because she didn’t know the exact location of the food truck at any given moment, or where in the truck the artifact was located. It would get him good and angry… which might make him stupid, or careless.
She sighed and leaned back in her chair. Tol wasn’t the only problem on the horizon, but the second one was simpler to deal with. Thali Ramjan was much too keen for Lois’ comfort. The woman had the lean and hungry look of a reporter bent on finding fame at all costs.
People like that could be made to crumble with the right pressure, in the proper places, and through the proper channels. Having them eliminated was a risky proposition, since their lives were played out in the media, but having them disgraced worked almost as well.
Lois smiled. She was fairly sure someone could create some stunningly salacious images of Miss Ramjan engaged in… Lois’ mind wandered across an infinite landscape of perverted choices before settling… engaged in a donkey show in Mexico… heavy rubber fetishism in Amsterdam… having sex with underage boys. The possibilities were almost infinite!
Still, the simple methods had a certain charm, and were no less effective. Lois could have a kilogram of cocaine hidden under the front seat of Thali Ramjan’s car with a single phone call. Then again, in Washington, DC, crack cocaine had a certain historical significance, which might make it an effective choice.
Lois sipped her coffee with a smile. Her hand still itched.