Title: True Lies
Author: Rhasa
Category: Drama
Rating; PG-13
Disclaimer: Aaron Sorkin is a lucky lucky man. He owns these guys not
me.
Summary: A witch hunt in the White House leads Josh to fear the
worse.
True Lies 1/1 by Rhasa
"Josh?" Leo called his name.
"I don't know what to say. I can't believe-" Josh stood motionless,
a thousand thoughts running through his head. He hadn't expected
this disturbing news.
"We're resolved to handling this quietly," Leo's soft voice broke
through his thoughts.
"No. I can't believe this bullshit you're telling me."
"Josh," Leo drawled out his name in warning.
"I can't believe any of it. I can't believe you for even suggesting
it," he pointed squarely at Bruno. "Or you, Toby, for even
suspecting it." He had desperately tried to keep his anger in check
for the best part of five minutes since this ridiculous conversation
had begun. But now. now he unleased a fury and turned it's wrath on
what he considered to be the utter idiots standing in this
room. "And you, Leo," he rounded on his boss. "You of all people. I
can't believe you for even discussing it. It's bullshit, Leo. Total
bullshit."
"Do you honestly think I would come to you if I thought there wasn't
any basis for these suspicions?"
"That's all they are Leo, suspicions. It's a god damned witch hunt."
"We've conducted some initial enquiries and there is concern," Toby
said quietly.
"Concern? The only concerns you have are for your own asses. The
fact is that you screwed up and now you're looking for someone else
to blame."
"Josh, this isn't about that," Bruno offered.
"Isn't it? Well it's damn more plausible than accusing Donna of
leaking information, no that wasn't it, selling. selling information
to Blake."
"You haven't been hearing a word I said, have you, Josh?" Bruno
advanced on him, clearly annoyed that his word had not been taken
seriously. "If it walks like a duck, and talks like a duck, then it
probably is a duck, Josh!"
"Why you-" Josh leapt for Bruno's throat. If it wasn't for the
restraining hands of both Leo and Toby, there was no doubt that Josh
would have socked him one.
"That's enough!" Leo barked.
They all took a moment to take a breath and calm down. Josh looked
at the downcast eyes in the room. Toby looked like he was
desperately willing for the floor to swallow him up. He knew the
Director of Communications wanted to be anywhere but here doing
anything else but discussing this. Leo returned to the relative
safety of behind his desk and Bruno paced.
Obviously this had not gone well. Leo had warned him a few minutes
ago that this would be a sensitive discussion. That man had a gift
for understatement.
"Josh, we haven't accused Donna of anything. We have some concerns--"
"Suspicions. Accusations. They're the same thing around here."
"Good god, none of us want it to be true. That's what we're here for
today. To get a handle on this. Resolve things quietly and clear up
this matter once and for all. That's why we brought you in on it. To
see if you could shed some light on things."
"Well that was good of you," Josh replied sarcastically.
"And to give you a heads up."
"What do you mean, Leo?"
"There's going to be an informal, very quiet investigation."
"What?" Josh shouted again.
"We're going to be speaking with Donna, ask her to clarify
everything Bruno has told you this morning."
"You can't be serious? You're going to haul her in here and. and.
interrogate her?"
"Josh," Leo sighed deeply. "This is me you're talking to. It's not
going to be like that."
"Maybe not for you. But it's damned well going to feel like that to
her. And then what are you going to do Leo, after you have accused
her and made fools out of yourselves for suspecting her in the first
place. Are you going to pat her on the head say, "good girl" and
send her back to work? She'll be crushed."
"This is Donna we're talking about. If she's done nothing wrong,
she'll understand. She'll bounce back."
"You're right. This *is* Donna we're talking about. She *has* done
nothing wrong and you don't really know her at all if you think
she'll just *bounce* back from something like this."
"Josh, we have a job to do," Toby said uncomfortably. "Donna has the
right to answer these accusations. She has the right of reply."
"Yeah, but not like this. Not to you," Josh sighed.
"What do you have in mind," Leo asked, picking up on the idea that
Josh had an alternative for him to consider.
"Let me talk to her-" Josh began.
"That's not a good idea," Bruno stated plainly.
"Let me ask her. Let me ask for explanations. If I'm not satisfied
with her answers then you can take it from there."
"You can't expect me to believe that you would be impartial to
anything she has to say?" Bruno, clearly annoyed, asked.
"No more or less than you can, which should even up this little
witch hunt you got going, Bruno."
"No," Bruno simply said.
Josh turned quickly to face his boss "Give me this, Leo, please.
Please let me talk to her. This is Donna for crying out loud."
Leo looked into the younger man's eyes and had to cast his eyes
downwards for what he saw there. It made Leo feel ashamed but also
scared. He wanted to believe in Donna. He truly did. But if it
turned out that she had been selling information he was more
concerned not for the information lost or the damage something like
this would do to re election but for the blow it would serve to
Josh, the betrayal he would feel. She was like Josh's right arm. The
damage to the White House could be fixed, but Leo feared the damage
to Josh would be irreparable.
Leo sighed, god he felt old. "Okay. You can talk to her, Josh. But I
want to know everything she says."
"Okay," Josh sighed in temporary relief.
End part 1
The nature of the accusations against Donna will be clarified next
chapter.
Rhasa4@yahoo.com
Author: Rhasa
Category: Drama
Rating; PG-13
Disclaimer: Aaron Sorkin is a lucky lucky man. He owns these guys not
me.
Summary: A witch hunt in the White House leads Josh to fear the
worse.
True Lies 1/1 by Rhasa
"Josh?" Leo called his name.
"I don't know what to say. I can't believe-" Josh stood motionless,
a thousand thoughts running through his head. He hadn't expected
this disturbing news.
"We're resolved to handling this quietly," Leo's soft voice broke
through his thoughts.
"No. I can't believe this bullshit you're telling me."
"Josh," Leo drawled out his name in warning.
"I can't believe any of it. I can't believe you for even suggesting
it," he pointed squarely at Bruno. "Or you, Toby, for even
suspecting it." He had desperately tried to keep his anger in check
for the best part of five minutes since this ridiculous conversation
had begun. But now. now he unleased a fury and turned it's wrath on
what he considered to be the utter idiots standing in this
room. "And you, Leo," he rounded on his boss. "You of all people. I
can't believe you for even discussing it. It's bullshit, Leo. Total
bullshit."
"Do you honestly think I would come to you if I thought there wasn't
any basis for these suspicions?"
"That's all they are Leo, suspicions. It's a god damned witch hunt."
"We've conducted some initial enquiries and there is concern," Toby
said quietly.
"Concern? The only concerns you have are for your own asses. The
fact is that you screwed up and now you're looking for someone else
to blame."
"Josh, this isn't about that," Bruno offered.
"Isn't it? Well it's damn more plausible than accusing Donna of
leaking information, no that wasn't it, selling. selling information
to Blake."
"You haven't been hearing a word I said, have you, Josh?" Bruno
advanced on him, clearly annoyed that his word had not been taken
seriously. "If it walks like a duck, and talks like a duck, then it
probably is a duck, Josh!"
"Why you-" Josh leapt for Bruno's throat. If it wasn't for the
restraining hands of both Leo and Toby, there was no doubt that Josh
would have socked him one.
"That's enough!" Leo barked.
They all took a moment to take a breath and calm down. Josh looked
at the downcast eyes in the room. Toby looked like he was
desperately willing for the floor to swallow him up. He knew the
Director of Communications wanted to be anywhere but here doing
anything else but discussing this. Leo returned to the relative
safety of behind his desk and Bruno paced.
Obviously this had not gone well. Leo had warned him a few minutes
ago that this would be a sensitive discussion. That man had a gift
for understatement.
"Josh, we haven't accused Donna of anything. We have some concerns--"
"Suspicions. Accusations. They're the same thing around here."
"Good god, none of us want it to be true. That's what we're here for
today. To get a handle on this. Resolve things quietly and clear up
this matter once and for all. That's why we brought you in on it. To
see if you could shed some light on things."
"Well that was good of you," Josh replied sarcastically.
"And to give you a heads up."
"What do you mean, Leo?"
"There's going to be an informal, very quiet investigation."
"What?" Josh shouted again.
"We're going to be speaking with Donna, ask her to clarify
everything Bruno has told you this morning."
"You can't be serious? You're going to haul her in here and. and.
interrogate her?"
"Josh," Leo sighed deeply. "This is me you're talking to. It's not
going to be like that."
"Maybe not for you. But it's damned well going to feel like that to
her. And then what are you going to do Leo, after you have accused
her and made fools out of yourselves for suspecting her in the first
place. Are you going to pat her on the head say, "good girl" and
send her back to work? She'll be crushed."
"This is Donna we're talking about. If she's done nothing wrong,
she'll understand. She'll bounce back."
"You're right. This *is* Donna we're talking about. She *has* done
nothing wrong and you don't really know her at all if you think
she'll just *bounce* back from something like this."
"Josh, we have a job to do," Toby said uncomfortably. "Donna has the
right to answer these accusations. She has the right of reply."
"Yeah, but not like this. Not to you," Josh sighed.
"What do you have in mind," Leo asked, picking up on the idea that
Josh had an alternative for him to consider.
"Let me talk to her-" Josh began.
"That's not a good idea," Bruno stated plainly.
"Let me ask her. Let me ask for explanations. If I'm not satisfied
with her answers then you can take it from there."
"You can't expect me to believe that you would be impartial to
anything she has to say?" Bruno, clearly annoyed, asked.
"No more or less than you can, which should even up this little
witch hunt you got going, Bruno."
"No," Bruno simply said.
Josh turned quickly to face his boss "Give me this, Leo, please.
Please let me talk to her. This is Donna for crying out loud."
Leo looked into the younger man's eyes and had to cast his eyes
downwards for what he saw there. It made Leo feel ashamed but also
scared. He wanted to believe in Donna. He truly did. But if it
turned out that she had been selling information he was more
concerned not for the information lost or the damage something like
this would do to re election but for the blow it would serve to
Josh, the betrayal he would feel. She was like Josh's right arm. The
damage to the White House could be fixed, but Leo feared the damage
to Josh would be irreparable.
Leo sighed, god he felt old. "Okay. You can talk to her, Josh. But I
want to know everything she says."
"Okay," Josh sighed in temporary relief.
End part 1
The nature of the accusations against Donna will be clarified next
chapter.
Rhasa4@yahoo.com