Im not a fool, Lisa. Theyll whisk it away and take it to Bethesda.

He sounded pissed. She had obviously been too authoritative. Everyone else was easy, but it was al-ways more difficult to strike a good balance with Timwick. In public he was properly respectful and subservient, but in private he never let her forget they were partners. She softened her voice. Im sorry, I know youre doing everything you can. Im just frightened. I feel a little helpless.

As a king cobra.

She felt a ripple of shock. It was the first time Timwick had ever used sarcasm with her. Not a good sign. Shed been noticing how nervous and on edge hed been lately, and now he was taking it out on her. Do I deserve that, James? We agreed it had to be done, and Ive always been honest with you.

A silence. I didnt expect this to happen. You told me everything would go smoothly.

Dont get angry. Look at the big picture. She needed Timwick. He had his job just as she had hers. She kept the irritation from her voice. Im doing my best. She reminded him gently, It was you who didnt wait long enough at the funeral home. There wouldnt have been a problem if youd made sure Donnelli had done his job.

I sat there and watched him burn. I thought it was safe to leave. How was I to know it took so damn long to burn a body?

She would have known. She would have re-searched and found out all she needed to know. She had been a fool to trust Timwick to do the same. I know. Its not your fault. But now we have to cope with ithellip; and Logan. You found no trace of the skull?

There were signs that the Duncan woman had been working, but no skull. If shes as good as re-ported, we have to assume shes completed the work.

Lisa felt the muscles of her stomach tighten. It will be fine. Her work alone proves nothing. We just have to make sure theyre discredited in the media before they get more proof. We took the first step today. Your job is to find them and make sure that no other damage is done.

I know my job. You just keep Detwil in line. He was a little too boisterous at the last press conference.

She was handling Kevin perfectly. Timwick had deliberately added that dig to get back at her for criti-cizing his handling of Donnelli. You think so? Ill watch it, James. You know how I rely on your judgment. She paused. What about the Duncan woman? So far weve aimed most of our efforts against Logan. She may prove as difficult.

Im keeping my eye on her, but Logan is the power player. Hes calling the shots.

Whatever you say. But could you give me a more complete report on Duncan?

It is complete. What else could you want to know?

More about her professional background. Theyll try for a DNA match and shes bound to have contacts.

After tomorrow theyll know how dangerous it is to surface. With any luck well catch them before they can get anything else done.

Wed be foolish to rely on luck, wouldnt we?

For Gods sake, how much DNA could be left after its been through a fire?

Ive no idea, but we cant take the chance.

And, like I said, Logan will be calling the shots. They cant just walk into a DNA lab with that skull. We know where theyll be going for help. Ive already got Ralph Crawford at Duke staked out. If we dont get them right away, theyll walk right into our

Please, James, she said gently.

Okay. She could hear the impatience in his voice. Ill get it.

Good. And let me know as soon as the body ar-rives at Bethesda. She hung up the phone, got up, and strode toward the bedroom.

Logan will be calling the shots.

She wasnt so sure. Her file on Eve Duncan re-ported a strong, intelligent woman who wouldnt walk behind any man. Who should know better than Lisa how a strong woman could shape situations to suit herself ? Timwick, as usual, was underestimating the opposition. She would have to be the one to keep an eye on Eve Duncan.

Lisa?

Kevin was standing in the bathroom doorway wearing Bens red paisley robe. It was one of the few garments of Bens that Kevin liked. He had a fond-ness for bright colors that shed had to curb. Ben rarely wore anything but navy or black.

He was frowning. Is something wrong?

She forced a smile. A little problem with Timwick.

Can I help?

Not in this. Let me handle it. She went to him and slipped her arms around his neck. He smelled of Bens specially blended lemon cologne. Fragrances were important. Even when you didnt realize it, it was a subtle reminder of who a person was. Sometimes when she woke suddenly in the middle of the night she thought Ben was still lying next to her. She whispered in Kevins ear, You were superb today at that AARP meeting. You had them in the palm of your hand.

Really? he asked eagerly. I thought I did pretty well.

Brilliant. Better than Ben could ever have done. She kissed him gently. Youre doing such a good job. We could be in the middle of a war now if you hadnt taken over.

He was that unstable?

She had drummed Bens supposed instability into Kevins head a hundred times, but he always wanted reinforcement. Guilt? No, he just liked the idea he was saving the world. For an intelligent man, Kevin could be incredibly vain and naive. Do you think Id be doing what were doing now if I hadnt been afraid of what hed do?

He shook his head.

And youve been magnificent. I think well get the health bill passed this year. Have I told you how proud I am?

I couldnt do it without you.

Maybe I helped you in the beginning, but youre surpassing anything She threw back her head and grinned impishly at him. My God, youre getting hard as a rock. Ive got to re-member what praise does to you. It keeps me a happy woman. She backed away from him and slipped off her robe. Now, come to bed and Ill tell you how marvelously you handled the Japanese ambassador.

He chuckled and moved toward her, eager as a kid for the romp to come. She kept the teasing, bold smile as she slipped into bed.

She and Ben had shared a bed, and bringing Kevin immediately into hers was a necessary part of the plan. He had been hesitant, even shy at first, and shed had to use her every skill to draw him in without appearing too aggressive. She could have found other ways to manage him, but this was best. It was her job to make sure Kevin was controlled.

And sex was the greatest controller of all.

Arrogant bitch.

Timwick leaned back in his chair and rubbed his eyes. It was all very well for Lisa to order him around and then go to bed and let him do the work. She was there in the White House, acting like royalty, and he was in this crummy office, working his ass off. She wanted results, but she didnt want to dirty her hands, and she turned a blind eye to what she didnt want to see. He was the one who kept things running and pro-tected them from disaster. Where would she be now if he hadnt stepped in?

Eve Duncan. She was Logans tool, nothing more. It was stupid to make her a priority. If Lisa hadnt been such a feminist, she would have admitted that Logan was the prime threat.

Jesus, it seemed as if there were threats closing in all around him.

His hands clenched the arms of the chair. Keep calm. He was doing everything he could to save the situation. He would save it. He had too much at stake to take off and run. If he stuck it out, hed have every-thing hed ever wanted.

He reached for the telephone. Do what she saidfor now. He needed her to help stop the expo-sure of the cover-up and he needed her to push Detwil into the White House for another term. After that hed find a way to gain control. Let Lisa think she was running the show.

Hed give her enough information on Eve Duncan to choke her.

Wake up, were here.

Eve opened her eyes to see Logan getting out of the drivers seat.

She yawned. What time is it?

After midnight. Gil reached for the door latch. You slept most of the way.