Epilogue

NEW YORK CITY

Will scanned the room. The chagrined faces of board members who had formerly served with him gazed back at him—at least those who weren’t too embarrassed to look. The others stared down at the conference table.

It was Will’s first official meeting as CEO of American Frontier. Drew sat in at the back of the room, at Will’s request.

Will stood and gestured around the room. “In this very boardroom, not long ago, we all heard a story. Former CEO Eric Sandstrom told it, in fact. It was a story about the Vikings—fearless, courageous explorers who took enormous risks so they could expand their realm. American Frontier has done that. Sometimes those risks paid off well. Other times they’ve led to unprecedented and very public failures.”

He didn’t need to note the Arctic crisis. Everyone in the room was well aware of it.

“We now have a choice. We can continue and fine-tune American Frontier’s mission—to innovate and search out new sources of energy—or we can die. As the world’s largest and most powerful oil company, what we decide in this room today will have a significant impact on the planet.

“My father always taught me, ‘To those who are given much, much is required.’ Our former CEO used that same statement to convince the board to continue the Arctic exploration and drilling for oil, even though we all knew the risks. Each of us in this room shares that blame, myself included, for making that decision. But it is what happens next that will go down in history as our response to one of the largest oil crises the world has experienced.”

The expressions of so many CEOs and titans of industry were now uplifted, hopeful. Will looked at Drew, who gave a subtle nod.

“So here is what I propose. American Frontier will accept the responsibility that is ours. We will work hard to recover and clean up what oil we can. We will pay reparations—yes, even though that will mean a vast cut in our profits and unhappy stockholders. We must do what is right.

“But that is only the beginning. We will continue our explorations for new oil, but also broaden our research budget. Especially in the area of clean energy. This is the time in our planet’s history where oil companies and ecological concerns should be working together instead of fighting each other. Together we can save civilization. Our efforts can spark the beginning of a dialogue, a campaign to bring parties together, and increase the public’s awareness . . .”

As Will continued sharing his extensive plan, board members began to nod. Frank Stapleton sat back and smiled, as if the ideas were his own and he agreed fully.

The vote was unanimous to go with Will’s plan. Board members were enthused about the next steps. They all shook Will’s hand as they left the room.

Frank Stapleton was last. “Well done, son. Well done.” He too shook Will’s hand. “I told you that you’d be a great CEO for AF. You’ve got those board members believing in you already.”

“I truly believe ‘To those who are given much, much is required,’” Will said. “To me, it’s not simply a mantra. This is only the beginning. Before this is done, we will all be called to make difficult choices. Some will choose wisely.” He studied Stapleton. “Some will not. Each of us will have to live with our decision.”

Drew walked up to stand beside Will. “A wise person once said, ‘Things that are hidden will be revealed.’ I sincerely believe that.”

Stapleton cleared his throat. “Yes, I suppose that is true. Mr. Simons, always a pleasure to be in your company.” He swiveled back toward Will. “Until the next time, Will.”

Will leveled a steely gaze on his former ally. “You can bet on that.”

Sarah’s attorney skills were in hyperdrive. She’d met several times with the legislative affairs staff at the White House to prepare for her Senate confirmation. They had not been gentle with her. The process would be ugly, hateful at times, even vengeful. She had to be prepared for challenges from unexpected quarters.

The White House staff had assumed that their counsel would scare Sarah. They were surprised. It caused the opposite reaction. Sarah had been very still while the staff walked her through the weaknesses that would be exposed. Even her faith would be challenged, they told her. At the end, she simply nodded, pulled out a binder to take notes, and looked them in the eye. “Let’s get to work, then,” she said. “I do not intend to lose this.”

Now, in the quiet of her office, she was having second thoughts. Had she truly earned the chance to serve as the nation’s attorney general? Why now? Did the sudden move have to do with American Frontier and the story Carson had leaked to the media? Who was trying to play her? Who exactly was protecting whom? And from what? Might there be some loophole in the agreement between the president and the former AG, in which she could go after Jason Carson?

If she was confirmed, she’d have considerable authority. But in relation to American Frontier, Jason Carson, and the Polar Bear Bomber, her hands would be tied. The White House staff had advised her that she would need to recuse herself from any cases involving the company that her older brother now ran.

Somehow, in some fashion, Sarah was determined to aggressively pursue the truth about the bombing. Darcy and Jon would continue to keep her in the loop on anything new they discovered.

The media was having a field day with her brother as the new CEO of American Frontier. Will was often on camera—his answers calm, to the point, and so logical that the naysayers were muted. It helped that thanks to Jon Gillibrand, Will had already emerged in the press as the voice of reason that had attempted to pull AF back from the brink of poor decision making. The world now knew that since Will had been unable to sway the vote, he had walked away from American Frontier. He’d even sold his family’s shares in the company. His conscience was clear. But he had stated unequivocally that he felt called to the helm of AF now, to take the company through this dark time into a promising future with a new vision of pursuing clean energy that would benefit the planet.

Several of Sean’s ecological NGOs were already backing Will with their comments, and the chatter of the online community was mostly favorable toward the new CEO. Will, Kirk Baldwin, and Sean had met with heads of a dozen of the largest environmental groups in a sort of makeshift summit. More such meetings were planned to establish common ground and a working plan that both sides could agree on.

Sarah, as the president’s nominee for attorney general, and Will, as the CEO of American Frontier, had appeared together briefly for a media conference. It was a bit unorthodox. But Sarah had not yet been confirmed, so it was cleared by their respective media offices. Their appearance together served to send a clear message that both AF and the government wanted justice to be done and wrongs righted as much as humanly possible. Sarah and Will outlined an agreed-upon plan to move ahead with those goals in mind. The plan was very public, transparent, and straightforward.

That one press conference alone lowered tensions in several quarters. Once again, the Worthingtons were in the limelight, heralded by one national news magazine as “The Most Respected Family in America.”

It was the only press article Ava had ever posted in their home. She’d had the cover framed for their Chautauqua kitchen. All the kids had rolled their eyes over it, but not so their mother could see.

Sarah knew she should be satisfied. Sandstrom was behind bars. But if she’d learned anything over her years at the DOJ’s Criminal Division, and from her friend Darcy, it was that many things weren’t as they appeared. People’s motives were usually self-seeking. Eric Sandstrom had been led like a lamb to the slaughter. Why had it been relatively easy?

The answer was clear. Someone else—or multiple persons—had something big to hide. And Sarah, Darcy, and Jon would keep digging until they found it.

ON A BOAT OFF CORVO, AZORES ISLANDS

“I see you made the paper,” Dr. Leo Shapiro said to Sean in his gravelly voice. “No more run for governor, huh?”

“Dad!” Elizabeth chided. “Did you finally read that? It’s weeks old.”

He waved her off. “We’ve been busy. Vacationing for the first time in years . . . well, combined with a little scientific work.” He turned his attention to Sean, who leaned over the boat to retrieve a water sample from the inlet. “Smart move, son, not to go into politics. You must have something else on your mind.” Leo grinned and cocked a thumb toward his daughter.

Sean looked at Elizabeth, who was lying on her back on the small boat, her feet dangling in the azure water. He’d never seen her so happy, so relaxed.

He’d never been happier himself. In a month, Sean and Elizabeth would be back at Chautauqua for a family get-together. For once, he looked forward to it instead of dreading it. Elizabeth would fit right in. All the Worthingtons, and Drew and Jean too, would love her. Of that, he had no doubt.

Then Sean, Elizabeth, and her father would team up for a mission that combined marine research for the University of Washington and a couple of NGOs that Sean wanted to check out.

Perhaps someday he’d take Elizabeth to his mother’s home in Ireland. Maybe someday he’d contact Thomas Rich. Close the loop on his remaining questions. For now, though, Sean was content.

Elizabeth sat up. The sun shimmered on her blonde hair as she draped it over one shoulder. She reached for the plastic travel vase Sean had purchased in Flores and inhaled the fragrance of the purple wildflowers he’d picked for her that morning off the shore of Corvo. Maybe he had learned a thing or two from his brother, who bought Laura a rose every week.

“Mmm, these smell so good,” she said and flashed him “the look.”

That look said everything.

He was home.