May 3
Trump International Hotel and Tower
New York City
11:59 P.M. EDT
They had the long-awaited late dinner in their rooms, Beck Casey on one side of the room-service table, Connor and Katie seated together across from him. Compared to Katie’s revenge-feast the day before, it was modest fare indeed.
“I admit, I guessed you weren’t telling me everything,” Katie said. “All those years, and you never told me anything about what you do. I was pretty angry, Dad.”
“All I can say is that I’m sorry,” Beck said. “For how you felt. Not for what I did, keeping it from you. I took an oath, but I’m not making that an excuse, Katie. It’s a hard world, and I wanted to keep you a separate part of my life—far away from the dirty parts of it.”
“I’ve seen how dirty it can get,” Katie said. “It’s okay, Dad. I get it. Everything’s okay now.”
Beck noted the unspoken punctuation to the sentence. Katie squeezed Connor’s hand.
“I met Ian Tatum,” Connor said. “Hell, except for you two jerks getting me drunk, I liked him.”
“Me too,” Beck said. “For a lot of years. But if we’re feeling bad, imagine how awful the Brits are feeling right now. Sending Ian as their representative to us, with all that’s happened in the past few days? They’ll be trying to live this one down for decades. Should be good for any negotiations for their help, too.”
“Gutsy move, using a MI-6 safe house as a haven for terrorists,” Connor said.
“He knew all the moves, how to slip through the bureaucratic cracks,” Beck said. “Any status on this Dawnswood woman?”
“There’s a BOLO out on her. Whether she was in on it or not—the Brits think not—she’ll still face being an unregistered agent of a foreign power. Ginger doesn’t live in Short Hills anymore.”
“What’s going to happen now?” Katie interjected. “Everything’s so confused, with computer viruses running amok, terrorists everywhere, the President dead, and everything. Are we going to war?”
“We’ve been in one for years,” Beck said. “As for a new one starting—your guess is as good as mine, Katie. There’s a lot of people who want vengeance, payback; there are a lot of reasons why that might not be the best idea, either now or long-term. In the end, I’m afraid that decision will be political, and nobody can predict which way the political cake gets cut.”
“With your job situation, what will you do?” Connor asked Katie.
“Marry you, and live a life of ease as the wife of a public servant,” she answered, her tone and face serious.
But only for a moment. Katie broke out in laughter, and both men joined in.
When it had subsided, she spoke in actual seriousness.
“I don’t know yet. But something. Something valuable, more useful than filing legal briefs for a corporate client. Give me a break, guys. I’ve only been out of work a couple of days, okay?”
More laughter, though also more restrained.
“You’ll keep on doing what you do, Dad, won’t you?”
“Probably,” Beck said. “But not right away. I’m taking a vacation in a week or so.”
“Going where?”
It startled Katie; she had never before seen her father blush.
“I’ve been invited to Israel for a visit,” he said, almost a stammer. “By a friend. She’s kind of tied up right now, kind of a medical issue, but we’ll be leaving when she’s free.”
“How old would this friend be?” Katie asked, though she had already guessed.
“She used to be too old for me,” Beck answered. “But I guess we’ve caught up with each other now.”
The trio grew silent after that, as the clock on the apartment wall clicked to midnight.