Soller noticed her iPhone was pressing hard against her body, and fear crept into her mind as she worried that its outline could be seen through her pocket.
Chapter 53
Addy Simpson looked up from his desk and said, “Thanks for getting here so fast, Jack.”
“No problem. What’s up?” Jack Turner asked.
Simpson’s office was one of three in the single-floor building, and was furnished with the bare minimum. It had plain white walls with gray thin-pile carpet covering the floor, and a desk with two chairs opposite to where he was seated. There was a dark brown leather couch along one of the walls, and one in the reception area, that would accommodate the occasional all-nighter. The two men had always been straight with one another, and the admiral understood the difficult position his friend was in.
“Do you have any news you can share about Trent?” Simpson asked, phrasing the question in a way that left Jack Turner with a little wiggle room. He wouldn’t necessarily have to lie if he had spoken to Trent and wasn’t ready to pass it along.
“No, nothing for you yet,” Turner said, easing himself into one of the chairs.
Simpson acknowledged. “Have you heard about what’s going on at The Shop?”
“Sure, I figured that’s what this was about.”
“The latest news has everyone taking this threat very seriously. I’m going to have to let POTUS know what they’ve found. We’re getting some solid help from the hacker who was targeted along with Soller’s son.”
“All the way to the top sounds about right.” Turner’s eyes narrowed. “Look, Addy, what’s going on?”
Simpson’s eyes reflected his inner turmoil, and Turner had picked up on it, likely concerned that it was bad news about his nephew.
“Matilde called,” Simpson said.
“Jesus. About her son?”
“No.” His eyes now burned with a familiar intensity and he said, “Someone’s taken her daughter.”
Turner’s eyebrows rose. “You’ve got to be shitting me.”
Simpson shook his head. “Afraid not.”
“What does she want you to do about it?”
“Find her.”
“For fuck’s sake, Addy! We can’t let personal problems get in the way of our work.” He threw up his hands. “You’re already on Trent’s case. You don’t even know how you’re going to handle the situation with him. You can’t go helping out some old flame.” He shook his head. “No way. No fucking way. It’s not even an option.”
They shared an intense moment. The former admiral wasn’t about to back down.
“You don’t care, do you?” Turner said.
“I wouldn’t say that. I see your point, and you’re right. This isn’t something I should be considering.” Simpson drew in a deep breath and said, “But I have to help her out. I wouldn’t be able to look in the mirror if I didn’t.”
“You’ve lost it, haven’t you?”
“No, I’m being serious.”
“Love can do some crazy things to a man”—Turner’s eyes narrowed—“like diluting his judgment. No question about it.” Simpson didn’t respond. “What? Do you want my permission to do something stupid?” Jack Turner paused for a long moment. “I want you to think about this, Addy. I mean, really think about it.” Turner stood and began to pace back and forth. “Some days it seems like Senator Soller’s sole purpose in life is finding ways to throw you under the bus.” He shook his head. “It’s only a matter of time before he finds the right bus.”
Simpson laughed. “Come on, Jack. Like it’s possible to make things worse with him.”
Turner shook his head again. “Sticking our noses into his daughter’s boyfriend problems? That’s just asking for trouble.”
Simpson smiled as he stood and walked to the weapon safe. “Oh, come on. Stop being so melodramatic.”
“So I take it you’re going to cut Trent some slack. You know, for what’s going on with Ryan?”
He opened the safe, and his tone turned serious. “We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it, but for now I need you to check something out with me.”
“And what’s that?”
“A house in Poolesville.”
He watched as Simpson collected some gear. “I guess you’re expecting company?”
“You only live once, so I’d rather go over prepared.” Simpson smiled. “We’ll need your truck. I’ll give POTUS a call on the way there.”
Chapter 54
President Vincent Cross fixed his gaze on a painting across the room as he waited for the man on the other end of the phone to respond. His eyes had drifted down to the wooden trim on the Resolute desk before there was an answer.
“Mr. President, this is quite a surprise,” Federal Reserve Chairman Bart Stapleton finally said.
“Bart, call me Vincent please,” President Cross said. “Sorry to interrupt your Saturday evening. Something’s come up and I need your help.”
“Of course. What can I do for you?”
“Please keep this conversation between the two of us. It’s of an extremely sensitive nature.”
“Absolutely. What is it that you need?” Stapleton responded without any real conviction.
This was a sticky subject, so Cross figured it would be best just to lay it all out there. “I need you to work out how to get someone on my team access to the Federal Reserve computer systems.”
“Why on earth would I want to do that?”
“We’ve discovered a computer threat in the wild, and there’s a chance the Fed might be a target. They’ll need to check every system that deals with money. Rates, transfers, domestic and foreign accounts.”
There was an uncomfortable silence as the chairman considered the request. “Our computer systems?”
“Yes. It’s a matter of national security.”
“I’ll need a little more information than that to consider something like this.”
“Unfortunately, at this point in the investigation we’re short on details, but we won’t be at liberty to share them until there’s more clarity on the situation. Suffice it to say, this is a highly advanced threat, and this is now our number-one priority. It’s imperative that the investigation be centralized to minimize the risk of setting off alarm bells.”
“That’s convenient, Vincent, now isn’t it?” Stapleton’s tone had quickly changed to one of a skeptic. “Giving your people the keys to the kingdom under the auspices of national security without offering a shred of detail.”
Stapleton was a man with enough power to do battle with the president. His position at the Federal Reserve gave him the power to use interest rates as a tool to stabilize the economy as much as he could a weapon to destroy the current administration’s economic policies. Cross knew the man had no qualms about doing whatever it would take to suit his needs.
“I appreciate your concern,” Stapleton barked in a belittling tone, “but I think you knew the answer to this question before you made the call.”
President Cross quickly realized his mistake. The United States Code restricted what information the Government Accountability Office could access about the country’s central bank. Congress had tried repeatedly to have the records showing its dealings with foreign governments and entities made available, but had had little success. Many had fallen in the fight, but the Federal Reserve’s financial records abroad remained shrouded in secrecy. Cross’s request had been interpreted as a back door to gain information, and he knew changing Stapleton’s attitude at this point would be practically impossible.