As the flight attendant opened the door, the southern hemisphere’s summer heat filled the cabin. She grabbed a bottle of water and started drinking to fend off thirst.
Anxiety kicked in during the limousine ride to the senator’s home, and she absorbed only partial glances of the city’s European-inspired architecture.
She called Renard.
“Good morning,” he said. “It is still morning, is it not?”
“About eleven o’clock.”
“I tried calling you a few hours ago, but apparently your phone was off.”
“I needed the rest.”
“You’re still planning lunch with the senator?”
“Of course. Did you hear about the troop movement?”
“No,” he said. “But it doesn’t surprise me. May I conclude that the landing force is of sufficient size that several thousand troops will reach shore, regardless of the Ambush’s actions?”
“Correct.”
“Have you considered why Gomez waited to send his landing force?”
“When we talked about it last night,” she said, “I just assumed it was for boosting morale among the troops.”
“Sharing the confidence and jubilation of the returned pilots. Yes, I remember your theory. I thought it was accurate. But now you doubt yourself?”
She tilted back her bottle and signaled to her assistant seated beside her for a replacement.
“Yeah,” she said. “He isn’t the type of guy to leave things to chance. He must have allowed for the possibility that the Ambush would survive.”
“Do you know his plan?”
“Sheer numbers, by the looks of it,” she said. “Fifty ships to move five thousand men. Many of them fishing ships for decoys.”
“Interesting. Such a plan should work.”
“Not if I can talk Ramirez into pulling them back.”
“I wish you luck,” he said.
“What about Jake?” she asked. “I assume you’ve talked to him? One of our satellite’s infrared sensors picked up a submarine burning on the surface.”
“That was indeed him,” Renard said. “I spoke with him just before I attempted to call you. He used limpets on the Santa Cruz, and then when Commander Martinez surfaced to remove the limpets, Jake ended the encounter with an Exocet missile.”
Her mind raced to frame Jake’s attack in her favor.
“Okay,” she said. “Neither of us have access to a casualty report, but if the Santa Cruz is still floating, I can assume that Jake did a good job minimizing the body count. Ramirez will have to respect that.”
“Indeed. I’ve asked Jake to seek the San Juan and to attack limpets to it as well. His limpet attack paired with the threat of a subsequent Exocet missile is a brilliant way to neutralize a submarine with minimal damage.”
“Has he had any sign of the San Juan?”
“Not yet, I fear. Not since it ran after the Ambush.”
“Call me if you hear anything from Jake.”
“I will. Are you sure you don’t want me to join you during your audience with Senator Ramirez?”
“Not yet. Let me feel him out first.”
“Remember your seductive wiles. Use every asset you have to turn him to our cause.”
“I’ll get the job done.”
Senator Ramirez represented the Buenos Aires province and lived in the city in an upper middle class ranch. He surprised Olivia by marching out of the door of his personal residence as the limousine he sent for her pulled up to the portico.
The car stopped, and the driver let her assistant our first. When she took her turn greeting the senator, she noted his trim posture and handsome features.
His square jaw moved without perturbing the slight grin that revealed his apparent belief in his invincibility, and dark, unblemished skin covered his sharp features. Intelligence beamed from his dark eyes, and his voice sounded graceful and strong like silk, reminding her of a classically trained tenor.
“The pleasure is mine,” he said. “May I have a moment in private with you?”
“Of course,” she said.
She sent her assistant ahead into the house as Ramirez gestured for the limousine to drive away.
“Come here,” he said.
Tentative, she smiled to keep him at ease. Every moment she had with him needed to arouse or entice him to keep him off balance. She obeyed and stepped closer to him.
He surprised her again by extending his arm around her waist and pulling her into an embrace. He pressed his lips against hers and immobilized her, but he held his tongue within in his mouth. He then ran his face through her hair and whispered.
“In case anyone is watching,” he said. “I need to give the impression that you are my mistress.”
She whispered back to him.
“You’re doing a fine job of that, senator. How did you know that I wouldn’t protest?”
“Because I’ve read your dossier just as you’ve read mine. Despite your rise in the administrative leadership, you’re still a trained seductress. The cleavage you’re revealing, your shapely thighs calling to me, your eyes commanding me to yield to you. I know the tricks.”
“I meant no offense. But can’t a girl enjoy herself by mixing business and pleasure? How many daughters of cops from Connecticut get to kiss the future most handsome and desirable president of an industrialized nation?”
“There’s no need for flattery, and no need for seduction. True, I cannot deny my weakness for women, but my tastes are my own to decide. Do not force the issue, especially when my country’s future is at stake.”
“Of course not.”
“Good. When we head inside, you will shower away your pheromone-laden perfume and change into clothes that hide your curves and skin. I’m certain that I have your size somewhere in my guest wardrobe. My assistant will see you to the shower and then to the lunch table where we will discuss the matters you came to discuss.”
He released her, and she felt like she had landed on the wrong end of a negotiation. She recovered her dignity by reminding herself that she had at least earned Ramirez’s attention.
“Follow me, please,” he said
When she passed into the house, he closed the door. A servant approached, but Ramirez raised a finger to pause him.
“Now that we’re beyond potential prying eyes and ears, let me address the first issue that I’m sure you wish to discuss.”
“And what’s that?” she asked.
“Please,” he said. “We don’t have time for games. Give me a gesture of trust by sharing your most immediate concern with me.”
“The troop movement.”
“I appreciate your candor,” he said. “And now you shall have mine. I could have stopped the troop movement to the Malvinas, but I opted not to. Do you care to guess why?”
The news startled her. She thought he had tried and failed. She feared that he was as hawkish as Gomez, but then she let herself assume he had a better motive. She wracked her mind for that motive, found it, and voiced it.
“Credibility?”
“With whom?”
“Your military leaders, your political rivals and supporters, your voters, and the British Prime Minister.”
“Well said. You are indeed insightful. That was the complete answer, and I believe that we have a basis of understanding for the day’s discussions.”
“So, would you like me to freshen up now? A little less leg and cleavage?”
“Yes,” he said. “But while you are away, I ask you to consider a very important argument very carefully.”
“I’ll be glad to. What is it?”