“But-we’re expecting a call from the president.”

“I don’t care if we’re expecting a call from God.” She leaned in close. “Like it or not, Senator Glancy is going to have to make a public address today. And I think he just might like to read what he’s going to say before he says it. So get to work. Capice?”

Hazel lowered her chin. “Yes, ma’am.”

Ben and Christina observed the entire scene. “So,” Christina said, “you want to approach her, or shall I?”

Ben hesitated. “You know… she does seem to be more your type…”

“Somehow I had a hunch you’d say that.” Christina marched up to the woman, and Burton did a sidestep to maneuver around her. Christina grabbed her arm tightly and held her in place.

“Excuse me? Your hand is on my arm.”

“Yes. Lovely jacket, by the way.” She tilted her head backward. “This is Ben Kincaid, and I’m his partner, Christina McCall. We have an appointment with the senator.”

“No, you don’t.”

“I can assure you that-”

“I can assure you,” Amanda said, glowering, “Ms. Whoever the Hell You Are, that if the senator had an appointment with you, I’d know about it.” She shrugged off Christina’s hand. “I keep the man’s calendar. He doesn’t go anywhere unless I tell him to.”

Ah, Ben thought, the power behind the throne. Or at the very least, the ego behind the throne.

Christina was trying to be patient, but Ben could tell it was a strain for her. “We set up this appointment with the senator himself just-”

“Doesn’t matter,” Burton said, holding the flat of her hand between them. “Today all our appointments have been canceled. As you’ve no doubt heard, we have important issues to deal with.”

“But that’s why we’re here. We-”

Burton ’s cell phone chirped. She flipped it open and checked the caller ID.

“It’s very important that we-”

“Talk to the hand, lady.” She turned her attention to the phone. “I know you have, Maury. I know I owe you one. But this isn’t the one. I can’t say anything until…” She closed her office door behind her.

Christina stared at the closed door, fuming. “If I killed her,” she said, “do you think you could get me off on justifiable homicide?”

“Probably,” Ben said. “But let’s not go there.”

“Are you Kincaid?”

They both turned and saw a small wizened man in a wheelchair. His hair was gray and not ample. Even through his trousers, his legs appeared atrophied, and he wore extremely thick glasses. Ben guessed he was around sixty, but given the obviously poor state of his health, it was difficult to know for certain.

“I’m Ben Kincaid, and this is my partner, Christina McCall. You are…”

“Marshall Bressler, at your service. I’m Todd’s AA.” He noted their blank faces. “That’s short for administrative assistant. It’s like being chief of staff. I’m the top dog. After the senator himself, of course.”

Ben frowned. “I was under the impression that Ms. Burton-”

“No, she just thinks she’s the top dog.” He grinned a little, and Ben couldn’t help grinning back. “Amanda came on during the senator’s last reelection campaign. The idea was that we needed to reach out to a younger, female constituency, so I hired her to show this old geezer how to do it. After the campaign, we kept her on staff. Mostly she’s in charge of media relations.”

“She’s a spin doctor,” Christina said.

“Yup. Which explains why she’s so frazzled. If ever Todd needed a good spin, this is the day. But she still reports to me, and the only person I report to is Todd.”

“He must have a lot of faith in you.”

Bressler shrugged in a self-effacing way. “I’ve been with him since the get-go. Managed his first campaign for Oklahoma County DA, and every campaign since. Even after a traffic accident seven years ago did this to me.” He gestured toward his useless legs.

“I’m sorry,” Ben said quietly.

“Don’t be, son. Hasn’t slowed me down a bit. I still work as hard for Todd as I ever did-maybe more. I think it would be fair to say he has a lot of faith in me. And I have a lot of faith in him.” He pursed his thin lips. “Which makes these recent developments all the more distressing.”

“Senator Glancy called me yesterday,” Ben said. “He’s concerned about a possible legal action. Maybe a sexual harassment suit, since Ms. Cooper did work under him.”

“There’s also a possibility of censure from the floor of the Senate. Even possible expulsion. He’s going to need some astute legal advice.” Bressler rolled in even closer. “Can I be honest with you?”

“Of course.”

“I didn’t want him to call you in. You or your partner.”

“Oh.”

“Nothing personal, son. But this is serious business. He needs the best there is, not some chum from law school. But then I started doing a little research on you. Even read one of your books last night. You’ve done pretty well for yourself.”

Ben felt his face burning. He was never good at accepting compliments and always changed the subject as quickly as possible. “Well, thanks, but if you want to hire other counsel-”

“Let me finish, son. What Todd told me was that he thought it was important that we hire an Oklahoman-not some fancy-pants DC or New York City lawyer-and that he thought you had one of the best, if not the best, reputations of any lawyer in the state.”

Christina’s eyes brightened.

“And I’m not just talking about your win-loss record, although that’s pretty damn impressive. I’m talking about your personal reputation. I talked to folks, and what I got over and over was that Ben Kincaid was a man with integrity. A man who wouldn’t lie to or mislead the court, not even to defend a client. The world’s most square-shooting geek. A veritable saint.”

Ben shuffled his feet. “I’m sure that’s an exaggeration.”

“I hope not, son. Because a saint is exactly what we need right now. The news media is going to forget all the good Todd has done for the poor, the homeless, battered women, since he came to Washington. They’re going to try to make him out like he’s a devil. And who better to convince them that he’s not-than a saint?”

Ben tugged at his collar. All this beatific talk was making him uncomfortable. He just tried to do his job as well as he could. He was no saint. Heck, once, when he was ten, he stole a comic book from Crest Groceries.

“So,” Christina interjected, “can we see the senator?”

“Of course. You folk need to have a good chin-wag about how he can best defend himself. He’s waiting for you now in one of the Senate cafeterias.”

“Really?” Ben arched an eyebrow. “That must be…”

“Awkward? Not for Todd. Ballsiest man who ever lived. I think he wanted to do it as a test. See who would sit with him, talk to him. And see who was distancing themselves, shunning him, acting as if he’s already been expunged. A senator needs to know who his friends are. Especially in times of crisis.” He pivoted his chair toward the door. “Come on. I’ll show you the way.”

“Oh-let me.” Ben raced around behind the wheelchair to help-but found there were no handles. “Aren’t there usually…”

“Not on my chair, son.”

“I’m surprised they make them-”

“They don’t. This one was custom-built for me. The senator’s wife, Marie, had it designed and paid for it herself. Birthday present, not six months after my accident. Special executive edition. See? A sliding tray I can fold across to use as a desk. A compartment under the armrest for holding documents and files.”

Ben pointed to a recess at the end of the right arm. “Even a cup holder.”

Bressler shook his head. “Cell phone charger.”

“Okay, now I’m impressed. But still-no handles?”

“I don’t need anyone to push me. I push myself.”

“I didn’t mean any offense. Usually-”

“I know, son. But I’ve taken care of myself all my life. Not going to stop now just because of this little accident. Now let’s get to that cafeteria. I think I can smell the bean soup from here.”