Abrupt summons to the Oval Office were not uncommon for the Senior Staff. Some were unwanted interruptions in already busy days, but others — this one, for instance — were more than welcome. Toby barely glanced at the note Ginger handed him before he was on his feet, closing folders and picking up a still hot cup of coffee.

"I'm sorry; the President needs me. Thank you for bringing this problem to our attention." He paused long enough to shake hands with the drab little man who, as spokesman for a small group of equally drab people, had been talking nonstop for fifteen minutes about an environmental issue affecting single-cell life forms in a small Virginia tidewater. "Ginger will see you out."

The man blinked myopically at him. "We could come back —"

"Of course, you could," Toby muttered.

"— And meet with Mr. Seaborn when he's available. He was our initial contact here at the White House and was very sympathetic to our situation."

"I'll check his schedule and get back to you," Ginger interjected, already herding them to the door.

Sam, where do you get the patience? Toby wondered as he hurried toward the Oval.

"Good morning, Toby," Mrs. Landingham said as he came into the President's outer office. "He's waiting for you."

"Thank you."

"Morning, Mrs. Landingham," CJ said behind him.

"Hello, CJ. Go right in."

Toby slowed a step and glanced at her. "Know what this is about?" he asked.

"Not a clue. You?"

"No, but it saved me from a lecture on protozoa."

"There's much we can learn from the tiniest creatures," the President reminded Toby from behind his desk.

"See what I mean?" Toby muttered to CJ before nodding to the President. "Yes, sir."

Leo came through the connecting door to his office. "Josh is meeting with the Minority Whip and then Roy Beach. I told him not to come back until he's got the Congressman back in the fold."

"You sent Josh to make nice?" Toby asked, taking a sip of coffee.

Leo frowned. "It's time he cleaned up after himself."

The President stood, picking up a note with a flourish. "The reason I sent for all of you is that, on Saturday — as you no doubt remember — my decision to call in the FBI about Sam was pooh-poohed by certain individuals." He shot Leo a glare. "This morning, however, my vigilance was rewarded. An airline ticket was purchased yesterday for one Samuel Seaborn. Purchased, I might add, by the firm of Callahan, Seaborn & Brown."

"Sam's dad?" Leo asked.

"He's going home." Toby sighed. "When?"

The President checked the note. "He's leaving —"

"Friday," CJ finished. When they all turned to stare at her, she explained, "I, ah, talked to him last night. "

"You've withheld important information from our investigation, Claudia Jean," the President chided her.

Leo rolled his eyes. "Could we possibly act like we're not the FBI and this isn't a manhunt?"

Toby turned to her. "Did Sam ask you not to mention it?"

"No. In fact, he said if it was easier for me, I should tell you."

"So..." Leo started.

"I wasn't sure it was the right thing to do."

"What can you — will you tell us, CJ?" the President asked.

She stared down at her hands as Toby silently willed her to talk. As the tall case clock struck the quarter hour, she looked up and spoke directly to the President.

"Sir, I read the letter he left for Leo, but I think Sam, being Sam, pulled his punches. He's angry, he's disillusioned, and..." She swallowed. "He's lost. He's going home to sort things out, to get away from Washington and clear his head."

The President looked at Leo and Toby. "Do we want him clearing his head all the way across the country?"

"To be blunt, sir, that's not our decision," Toby told him.

Leo leaned forward in his chair. "Sam will go, one way or the other. If we make things more difficult for him, he may not come back."

Toby studied the seal in the carpet. "I want to talk to him before he leaves."

"I'll go with you," the President decided. "He won't close his door to me."

"Or the five fully-armed Secret Service agents escorting you," Toby mumbled, seeing his chance to sit down with his deputy turning into a circus.

"Having the President of the United States drop by might be a little too much for him right now," Leo tried. "And his neighbors won't appreciate Ron Butterfield shutting down their street."

"I won't be there as the President, Leo! I'll be there as —"

"The leader of the free world?" Toby suggested.

The President gave him a hard look. "A friend, Toby, a concerned friend."

"With all due respect, sir," CJ interjected, "Having his boss stop by is one thing, having his boss's boss's boss arrive is another.

"So all of you think I should let him go without a word?" the President asked. "And let me remind you, if I hadn't called in the FBI, we wouldn't know what he was up to."

"CJ would have," Leo maintained.

"But she wasn't particularly forthcoming, was she?"

Announcing himself with a light tap on the door, Charlie poked his head in. "Mr. President, they're waiting for you in the East Room."

"Charlie, tell me something. What would you do if I showed up at your front door?"

"Well, I'd hope Ron had doubled the size of your protection detail."

"No, I mean what message would it send?"

"To be honest, sir, I'd be pretty overwhelmed."

The President frowned. "Thank you, Charlie. I'll be with you directly."

"Yes, Mr. President," and he left, closing the door behind him.

"All right, I won't go with Toby. But I'm still the President —"

"I'm going to hate this," Leo whispered to himself.

"— so I'll bring Mohammed to the mountain."

"Sam here?" CJ asked faintly.

"Nothing formal," the President assured her. "Just two friends talking."

Three voices said, "But, sir" in unison.

The President glowered at them. "Yes?" When no one spoke, he nodded. "Have you all forgotten we brokered a successful cease-fire between India and Pakistan?"

"Tell me you're not calling in that lunatic Brit for this," Leo moaned.

"Leo, I am not without my own diplomatic expertise. I don't need assistance from the Court of St. James to handle Sam." He stood and walked to the door as they all rose to their feet. "I'll have Mrs. Landingham check my calendar."

As soon as he was in the outer office, CJ turned to Leo. "You have to stop him. This will not help."

"I'll give him a little time, then broach the subject again. With any luck, we'll have a crisis to distract him for a few days."

Toby rubbed the spot where a headache had formed. "We've definitely got a skewed view of world events."

"Tell me about it," Leo returned as he started for his office.