I'm getting really tired of hiding. I've been trying to keep a low
profile ever since I got
back into town. It's best if Josh doesn't know I'm here-yet. I'll
reveal myself when the
time is right. When I've won. But for right now I have to be content
to watch from a
distance. To watch the slow and steady decline of Miss Donna Moss.
And to watch
Josh's reaction when he realizes that his white horse has come up
lame this time. I always
knew that hero complex of his would get him into trouble.
Monday
6:30 AM
Prison Infirmary
Donna awoke, scared and confused by her surroundings. It took her a
moment to realize
where she was. She tried to sit up but was stopped by sharp pain in
her chest and
abdomen.
Suddenly, all of the memories came flooding back. The altercation in
the prison yard, the
doctors, the pain. She remembered hearing Josh's voice and wondered
if she had dreamt
that. She could almost feel him touching her hand. She closed her
eyes and tried to focus
on Josh-to forget the pain.
She tried desperately to push down the fear and the despair that
enveloped her. She
wanted to be strong. Josh had asked her to trust him, and she did,
but she wasn't sure how
much longer she could hang on. She felt the fists and the feet of the
other inmates in the
yard, she felt the rough hands of the guards during the body cavity
searches. She
wondered if she would ever be able to get past this. Would Josh ever
be able to love her
after this? Would he ever want to touch her again and would she ever
want to be
touched? There would always be people who believed that she was
guilty no matter what.
Would she become a political liability? Was she going to have a job
to go back to?
Oh, God. Even if she did get exonerated was her life ruined? Had
Mandy won? Was that
the plan all along?
Suddenly Donna clutched her chest, the pain becoming more intense.
Her heart was
pounding like a drum. She was having trouble catching her breath. She
searched
frantically for the call button as she felt dizziness begin to take
over. Her hands were
shaking badly, but even if they hadn't been, her injuries made
pushing the small button
difficult if not impossible. She wanted to scream-but no sound would
come out. Her
vocal cords were frozen with fear. She suddenly wondered if this was
what going crazy
felt like. Her world was suddenly a very disturbing place.
The nurse entered the room and saw Donna's distress. She left and
returned a few
minutes later with a syringe, which she injected into Donna's iv tube.
"This will help." she said
But somehow Donna had her doubts.
Monday
9:00 AM
Toby's Office
Josh had been quiet, verging on silent, since his return from the
prison last night. Toby
knew that he needed to talk about his feelings. They had all learned
the hard way what
happened to Josh when he kept his feelings bottled up. Toby
understood Josh's fears. He
knew helplessness was the worst feeling in the world for a man like
Josh-a man who was
used to being a problem solver. He picked up the phone to call
the "cyber-sleuths" for the
third time that morning. He desperately wanted a piece of good news
to give to his friend.
Monday
9:15 AM
Josh's office
Josh heard someone rap on his doorframe and looked up to see Toby
standing in the
doorway.
"Come in."
"Josh, I may have some good news for you." Toby said cautiously
"I could sure use it, Toby."
"The "sleuths" may have a lead."
Josh's head snapped up, "Really?"
"Don't get excited yet. They don't have anything concrete but they
feel they are very
close."
"How long until we know?"
"Two days-three tops."
"Oh God Toby, I hope you're right. We have to get her out of that
place."
"I know."
"I can feel her slipping away," Josh said running his hands through
his hair "And there's
nothing I can do about it. I feel utterly helpless. She was there for
me when I needed her
and now I'm letting her down."
"You're not letting her down, Josh. She knows you're doing everything
you can."
"Unfortunately, that's not enough" Josh said wryly
"Now you know how she felt after you were shot. She wanted to make
you well right
away. It almost killed her to watch you suffer through the early
stages of your recovery.
But she came to understand that she couldn't snap her fingers and
make everything
better. There was a process that needed to be followed. And now
you're finding out the
same thing. Donna is going through something very frightening, it
isn't going to
disappear overnight."
"What if I'm not as strong as her? What if I can't save her the way
she saved me? What if
I fail?"
"You won't fail, Josh."
"How can you be so sure?"
"I wont let you" Toby stated matter-of-factly. Then he turned to
leave.
"Hey Toby?" Josh called as he reached the door
"Yeah?"
"You really are a good person, you know that?"
"Don't spread it around" Toby said realizing that this was the second
time he had been
told that this week. As soon as Donna was safely home, he thought, he
was going to have
to dispel all the myths about his nice-ness.
Monday
10:00 AM
Prison Infirmary
Ainsley slipped into Donna's room and was immediately shocked by her
friend's
appearance. It wasn't just the bruising or the cuts; it was the look
in Donna's eyes and her
entire demeanor. She looked-for lack of a better word---terrified.
Fear seemed to ooze
out of every pore in her body.
Ainsley approached the bed slowly. When she placed her hand on
Donna's arm, Donna
recoiled pushing herself as far away as she could without tumbling
off the other side of
the bed.
"Donna are you ok?" Ainsley asked, even though the answer was quite
obviously no.
"Sure, I'm fine" Donna said vacantly
"Is there anything I can get you?"
"No"
"Listen, Donna. I talked to the warden. He has agreed that it would
be best if we placed
you in isolation for a while. It will be safer for you there."
Donna stared at Ainsley, her fear growing even more intense. "I'm
going to be here for a
long time aren't I?"
"I'm not saying that. I'm just saying that I think it would be best
for now"
"Okay" Donna said "Whatever you want"
"Donna, look at me! We haven't given up. We can beat this. It's just
going to take a little
time ok? Don't give up hope."
"I'm not." Donna said even though her eyes told a different story.
"I'm going to try to arrange for everyone to come and visit you as
soon as you're out of
the infirmary. Ainsley said hoping to raise her friend's spirits.
"Really? I'd like that." Donna said. Then the insecurity and fear
that she had managed to
forget for a brief moment returned. "But I know that everyone is busy-
you know-
running a country and all. If they're too busy-I understand."
"Don't do this Donna" Ainsley begged "Don't give up on us now."
"I'm not. I'm just being realistic."
Wednesday
8:00 AM
DC Jail
Two days passed before Ainsley could get the warden to agree to her
plan for a large-
scale visitation. She wanted everyone to visit at the same time,
hoping that, as a group,
they would be able to bolster Donna's spirits. It had taken equal
parts of cajoling and
threatening but the visit was finally arranged.
One of Ainsley's hard won concessions was that the visit could take
place in the
minimum-security visitation room. They would still have to deal with
a glass partition,
but at least the room offered a little more privacy.
The guard opened the door in the rear of the room and Donna shuffled
in. It was obvious
that she was in pain. But the thing that struck Josh, in fact the
thing that struck them all
was the look in her eyes. It was fear, pure and simple. There was no
escaping it. She
inched over to the chair directly across from Josh and sat down.
"Donna?" he asked tentatively "Are you ok sweetheart?"
"I'm fine." she said "Are you ok? You look tired-have you been
getting enough sleep?"
"Don't worry about me Donna. What did the Dr. say?"
"He said I'm fine. Just a concussion, no fracture."
"Donna, I still want you to be seen in a real hospital. I'm gonna
try..."
"NO!" her scream startled everyone in the room.
"Donna? What is it?"
"No hospital visits. I won't go. I won't leave here because when I
come back they will do
another...another search." she said as she struggled to hold back her
tears.
At that precise instant, Josh knew what it felt like to have your
heart break. He was
completely overcome with feelings of helplessness. He peered deep
into Donna's eyes
looking for some trace of the light that used to reside there. He
could still see it, well feel
it more than see it, but it was buried under so much fear and pain
that he wondered what
it was going to take to get it back again. Whatever it took, he knew
he was willing to do
it.
"Ok, Ok. Whatever you want." Josh said soothingly and Donna seemed to
calm a little.
"Listen Donna" Toby said stepping towards the window. He desperately
wanted to give
her something to hold on to. "The cyber sleuths think they have a
solid lead. They are
close-very close. So I just need you to hold on for a little while
longer. Then we can get
you back to work because frankly, we're all tired of trying to handle
Josh without you
and the temp pool has barricaded their door and they are refusing to
send anyone else
up."
A small played on Donna's lips.
"Do you really think I'll be back soon?" she asked earnestly.
"I know you will" Toby said trying to impart some of his confidence
to Donna
"But after everything that's been said, everything that's been
written in the paper...I'm
not sure the President will want me to come back.."
"Don't even say that" CJ jumped in "I'll handle the media. Everything
will be fine. I have
a list you know" she whispered conspiratorially "Its of all the
people who have pissed me
off by the way they handled this story. I'm gonna start at the top
and work my way down
and by the time I'm done, there are gonna be writers crying over
their laptops from one
end of this country to the other."
"Oh goody. I haven't seen CJ decimate the press corps in quite
awhile." Sam said, hoping
that his light-hearted tone might brighten Donna's spirits.
The warden came in to signal that the visit was over.
Josh leaned forward, not caring anymore about the rules, and placed
his open hand
against the glass. Donna looked at him with tears in her eyes and
placed her hand on the
other side desperately trying to feel his touch through the glass.
"I love you," he said
"I love you too"
"Hold on, Donna. I'll be back soon"
Wednesday
9:45 AM
West Wing
The ride back to the White House was silent. Each staff member was
lost in his or her
own thoughts. Each trying desperately to think of a solution that
would get them out of
this nightmare. When they finally made it back to the west wing, they
scattered.
CJ was surprised when Carol poked her head in to say that Ainsley was
here to see her.
"Send her in," CJ said
"Am I interrupting something?"
"No, not at all. I'm just getting ready for my next briefing. I
didn't expect to see you
here."
"I won't keep you. I was just here to clean out my desk."
"Have a seat"
"CJ, I just wanted to ask you about what Toby said. I mean...is it
true? Are they really
close to finding some evidence I can use or was he just trying to
give Donna some hope."
"Both I think. I know Toby's been pushing hard so I think they should
have something
soon."
"They better" Ainsley said, "I don't know how much longer Donna can
hold on."
"Listen, Ainsley. I appreciate all of the sacrifices you've made and
everything you've
done for us so far and I know this is asking a lot but...."
"What?"
"Well, you realize that getting Donna home isn't the end right?
"How so?"
"Once Donna's home and safe, I want to-no I NEED to-make sure that
Mandy gets
what's coming to her"
"Amen. Just let me know what I can do."
"Well its up to we members of the sisterhood to police our own ranks.
We have to deal
with troublemakers in our own way."
"Count me in"
"Excellent"
Toby walked into Leo's outer office and Margaret motioned for him to
go right in.
"How'd it go?" Leo asked without preamble
"Not well," Toby said as he sunk down into a chair. "Not well at all."
"Anything I can do?"
"Just help me find a way to get her out of there Leo. And then turn
your head while I
obliterate Mandy Hampton from the face of the earth."
"It really got to you didn't it Toby?"
"It's the look in her eyes Leo. Like she's drowning. Like she's
flailing away in the
middle of the ocean. And as long as she's in that place, no one can
reach her. And the
only way we can fix things is to get her out of there"
"Then that's what we have to do."
"I know." Toby said as he headed back to his office to call
the "cyber sleuths" yet again.
"Hey Toby." Leo called after him
"If you're planning on telling me I'm a nice person Leo skip it, I
never want to hear those
words again." He said without turning back to see the smile on Leos
face.
What do you know about body cavity searches? Josh asked as soon as
Sam walked into
his office.
"Why?" Sam asked nervously
"I just want to know. I mean-if the search that Donna went through
the night she got
arrested was bad enough to make her not want to leave that place to
go to a hospital for
fear of going through it again----well----I want to know Sam."
Sam bit his lip. He knew that eventually Josh would find out about
the second search and
decided it was better to hear it from him.
"Josh, sit down."
"Why?"
"Just sit down."
"What is it Sam?"
"There was a second search, Josh."
"What? When? Why wasn't I told? And why do you know about it and I
don't?" Josh
thundered.
"Calm down. I was at Ainsley's apartment when Donna called her."
"When was this Sam?"
"It was the day of the interrogation. After they brought her back
from the police station.
She knew she had to leave again the next day for the arraignment and
she wanted Ainsley
to make sure she didn't have to go through another search."
"What did she say?" Josh asked, no longer able to mask his fury
"She said that she thought they were trying to send her a message
with the second search"
Sam tried to choose his words wisely knowing that Josh was about to
blow up. They were
rough...there was bruising..."
A loud crash interrupted Sam's words as Josh swept everything off of
the top of his desk
and sent it sailing. It was quickly followed by all of the books
being tossed off the closest
shelf of the bookcase.
"What the hell happened?" CJ asked as she and Ainsley ran through the
door. They were
greeted by the sight of Sam's eyes as wide as saucers and Josh,
standing in the rubble,
looking for something else to throw.
Suddenly Toby appeared breathlessly in the doorway, not even pausing
to notice the
carnage around him.
"They did it," he said as all eyes turned to him "They found the
evidence."
"Really?" Josh asked stepping over the piles of books and papers "Are
they sure?"
"We're meeting them at Houlihans in 30 minutes." Toby said grasping
his shoulders.
"This is it, we're gonna get her out."
"Then what are we waiting for. Let's go."
With that Josh and Toby bolted from the office with Ainsley right
behind.
"Call us as soon as you know anything" Sam called after their
retreating backs as he and
CJ leaned over to pick up the mess and try to restore order to Josh's
office.
Wednesday
11:30 AM
Houlihan's Pub
Josh looked nervously from Ainsley to the "cyber sleuth" whose name
he had found out
was Chad (no last name just Chad) and back again.
"What exactly do these records prove?" he asked anxiously.
"It's actually quite simple" Chad said with an elusive smile. "We
were able to track each
of the cash deposit records back to a single source. In other words,
each deposit was
made from the same terminal meaning that the same teller information
was used for each
one."
"What are the odds" Toby asked "that a person would use the same
teller every time they
went to a bank that size?"
"Astronomical" Chad replied "But we can actually do better than that.
We can prove that
even though these deposits occurred over a four month span according
to Ms Moss' bank
records, they were all actually entered on one of three dates within
the last three weeks."
"What are you saying?" Josh asked.
"Someone deliberately altered the records after the fact. We have
absolutely irrefutable
proof. Now if you need to know who did it, that will take awhile
longer."
"We know who did it" Toby growled. "And believe me she will pay
dearly."
"So do you want us to keep digging?" Chad asked
"Absolutely" Toby said, "I want every single transaction from the
bank, the landlord and
the credit card companies tracked. I also want some concrete proof of
the source of all
this destruction."
"Will do." Chad said. "If you don't need anything else I'll get back
to work."
"Thanks, Chad," Toby said, "I'll be in touch."
"Thank you," Josh said standing up and shaking Chad's hand "You may
literally have
saved a life."
As soon as Chad left the table, Toby and Josh both turned expectantly
to Ainsley who
was studying the printouts that Chad had given her.
"Is it enough?" Josh asked. "Can we get her out?"
"Well, it's certainly enough to get me another bail hearing" she said
rising from her chair.
I'm on my way over to the DA's office and I'll set up a hearing from
there. I'll call you
as soon as I have the particulars.
Wednesday
4:45 PM
DC Courthouse
Josh sat nervously in the last row of seats in the courtroom. He was
both thankful and
amazed that Ainsley had managed to get a bail hearing so quickly. He
was grateful to her
for the way she had come through for Donna. Josh knew how hard it had
been for
Ainsley to quit her job at the White House but she had done it
without a word of
complaint. He made a mental note to talk to Leo after this was all
over about hiring her
back; she had certainly proven her loyalty to all of them. Not bad
for a republican, he
thought.
Finally the bailiff called the case and Josh's heart was in his
throat.
"People vs. Donna Moss docket number 45230A"
"Didn't I already hear this one?" the judge asked.
"Yes sir," Ainsley said seizing the reins "We are here to reopen the
matter of bail. I
believe that the new evidence before you, your honor, casts serious
doubts on the
prosecutions claims that Ms Moss has a large hidden stash of cash
which she will use to
escape. The evidence in fact proves that no such cash ever existed."
"We're not trying the case here Miss Hayes, we're only talking about
bail. And why isn't
your client present?"
Ainsley continued undaunted. "My client, sir, is currently recovering
from serious
injuries she received inside the prison walls and is therefore unable
to attend. I realize
that we are not trying the case here, however, the prosecution
contends that Ms Moss is a
flight risk because she has access to a large cash reserve and the
fact that such a reserve
never existed means the risk of flight moves from likely to minimal."
"I'm sure that your honor is aware that the defendant is employed at
the White House. I
would say that she would therefore have connections which would still
make her a flight
risk." The prosecutor said
"Oh come off it" Ainsley said losing just a bit of her southern
charm "I hardly think that
the president is going to smuggle her out of the country on Air Force
One."
"Still...." The prosecutor began but Ainsley cut him off
"Your honor. We do not agree with the prosecutions assessment of Ms
Moss's flight risk
but we are willing to agree to electronic monitoring in order to ease
their mind."
"Your honor, we still contend...
This time it was the judge that interrupted the prosecutor. "Miss
Hayes makes a good
case here counselor. So I'm going to try to make both of you happy.
Miss Moss can have
bail under the following conditions: 250,000 dollars cash or bond and
24 hour electronic
monitoring with daily "in person" check-ins. Anything else?"
"No sir" the prosecutor mumbled.
"No sir, thank you sir" Ainsley beamed.
"That's all then" the judge said
Ainsley turned around and bounded to the back of the courtroom and
gave Josh a huge
hug.
"We did it," she said jubilantly.
"Thank you" he said brushing back a tear. "Now how do we go about
getting her out?"
"You arrange for the bail. Its 250,000 cash or bond. That means
you'll have to come up
with 10% in cash and collateral for the rest. Can you do it?"
"No problem. I'll find a way."
"Good. While you're doing that I'll go and make the arrangements for
the electronic
monitoring. We should be able to get her out first thing tomorrow
morning."
"Ok then, lets get to work" Josh said
"Hold on Donnatella, for just a few more hours," he whispered as he
ran out of the
courthouse towards his car.
7:00 PM
Mandy's Hotel Room
"What do you mean she's being released on bail?" Mandy screamed into
the phone.
"Just what I said." The voice on the other end answered. "They
presented new evidence
to the judge, and he thought it was compelling enough that he granted
her bail."
"What new evidence?" Mandy asked with just a hint of fear inching
into her voice.
"I'm not sure but I'll let you know as soon as I find out."
"You do that-and soon" Mandy hissed as she hung up the phone.
So Josh, she thought, you're a little smarter than I gave you credit
for. You've managed
to score a temporary reprieve for the fair maiden. But I haven't come
this far just to give
up when I hit a little snag. I just need to do a little revising of
my plan. But trust me-this
isn't over.
profile ever since I got
back into town. It's best if Josh doesn't know I'm here-yet. I'll
reveal myself when the
time is right. When I've won. But for right now I have to be content
to watch from a
distance. To watch the slow and steady decline of Miss Donna Moss.
And to watch
Josh's reaction when he realizes that his white horse has come up
lame this time. I always
knew that hero complex of his would get him into trouble.
Monday
6:30 AM
Prison Infirmary
Donna awoke, scared and confused by her surroundings. It took her a
moment to realize
where she was. She tried to sit up but was stopped by sharp pain in
her chest and
abdomen.
Suddenly, all of the memories came flooding back. The altercation in
the prison yard, the
doctors, the pain. She remembered hearing Josh's voice and wondered
if she had dreamt
that. She could almost feel him touching her hand. She closed her
eyes and tried to focus
on Josh-to forget the pain.
She tried desperately to push down the fear and the despair that
enveloped her. She
wanted to be strong. Josh had asked her to trust him, and she did,
but she wasn't sure how
much longer she could hang on. She felt the fists and the feet of the
other inmates in the
yard, she felt the rough hands of the guards during the body cavity
searches. She
wondered if she would ever be able to get past this. Would Josh ever
be able to love her
after this? Would he ever want to touch her again and would she ever
want to be
touched? There would always be people who believed that she was
guilty no matter what.
Would she become a political liability? Was she going to have a job
to go back to?
Oh, God. Even if she did get exonerated was her life ruined? Had
Mandy won? Was that
the plan all along?
Suddenly Donna clutched her chest, the pain becoming more intense.
Her heart was
pounding like a drum. She was having trouble catching her breath. She
searched
frantically for the call button as she felt dizziness begin to take
over. Her hands were
shaking badly, but even if they hadn't been, her injuries made
pushing the small button
difficult if not impossible. She wanted to scream-but no sound would
come out. Her
vocal cords were frozen with fear. She suddenly wondered if this was
what going crazy
felt like. Her world was suddenly a very disturbing place.
The nurse entered the room and saw Donna's distress. She left and
returned a few
minutes later with a syringe, which she injected into Donna's iv tube.
"This will help." she said
But somehow Donna had her doubts.
Monday
9:00 AM
Toby's Office
Josh had been quiet, verging on silent, since his return from the
prison last night. Toby
knew that he needed to talk about his feelings. They had all learned
the hard way what
happened to Josh when he kept his feelings bottled up. Toby
understood Josh's fears. He
knew helplessness was the worst feeling in the world for a man like
Josh-a man who was
used to being a problem solver. He picked up the phone to call
the "cyber-sleuths" for the
third time that morning. He desperately wanted a piece of good news
to give to his friend.
Monday
9:15 AM
Josh's office
Josh heard someone rap on his doorframe and looked up to see Toby
standing in the
doorway.
"Come in."
"Josh, I may have some good news for you." Toby said cautiously
"I could sure use it, Toby."
"The "sleuths" may have a lead."
Josh's head snapped up, "Really?"
"Don't get excited yet. They don't have anything concrete but they
feel they are very
close."
"How long until we know?"
"Two days-three tops."
"Oh God Toby, I hope you're right. We have to get her out of that
place."
"I know."
"I can feel her slipping away," Josh said running his hands through
his hair "And there's
nothing I can do about it. I feel utterly helpless. She was there for
me when I needed her
and now I'm letting her down."
"You're not letting her down, Josh. She knows you're doing everything
you can."
"Unfortunately, that's not enough" Josh said wryly
"Now you know how she felt after you were shot. She wanted to make
you well right
away. It almost killed her to watch you suffer through the early
stages of your recovery.
But she came to understand that she couldn't snap her fingers and
make everything
better. There was a process that needed to be followed. And now
you're finding out the
same thing. Donna is going through something very frightening, it
isn't going to
disappear overnight."
"What if I'm not as strong as her? What if I can't save her the way
she saved me? What if
I fail?"
"You won't fail, Josh."
"How can you be so sure?"
"I wont let you" Toby stated matter-of-factly. Then he turned to
leave.
"Hey Toby?" Josh called as he reached the door
"Yeah?"
"You really are a good person, you know that?"
"Don't spread it around" Toby said realizing that this was the second
time he had been
told that this week. As soon as Donna was safely home, he thought, he
was going to have
to dispel all the myths about his nice-ness.
Monday
10:00 AM
Prison Infirmary
Ainsley slipped into Donna's room and was immediately shocked by her
friend's
appearance. It wasn't just the bruising or the cuts; it was the look
in Donna's eyes and her
entire demeanor. She looked-for lack of a better word---terrified.
Fear seemed to ooze
out of every pore in her body.
Ainsley approached the bed slowly. When she placed her hand on
Donna's arm, Donna
recoiled pushing herself as far away as she could without tumbling
off the other side of
the bed.
"Donna are you ok?" Ainsley asked, even though the answer was quite
obviously no.
"Sure, I'm fine" Donna said vacantly
"Is there anything I can get you?"
"No"
"Listen, Donna. I talked to the warden. He has agreed that it would
be best if we placed
you in isolation for a while. It will be safer for you there."
Donna stared at Ainsley, her fear growing even more intense. "I'm
going to be here for a
long time aren't I?"
"I'm not saying that. I'm just saying that I think it would be best
for now"
"Okay" Donna said "Whatever you want"
"Donna, look at me! We haven't given up. We can beat this. It's just
going to take a little
time ok? Don't give up hope."
"I'm not." Donna said even though her eyes told a different story.
"I'm going to try to arrange for everyone to come and visit you as
soon as you're out of
the infirmary. Ainsley said hoping to raise her friend's spirits.
"Really? I'd like that." Donna said. Then the insecurity and fear
that she had managed to
forget for a brief moment returned. "But I know that everyone is busy-
you know-
running a country and all. If they're too busy-I understand."
"Don't do this Donna" Ainsley begged "Don't give up on us now."
"I'm not. I'm just being realistic."
Wednesday
8:00 AM
DC Jail
Two days passed before Ainsley could get the warden to agree to her
plan for a large-
scale visitation. She wanted everyone to visit at the same time,
hoping that, as a group,
they would be able to bolster Donna's spirits. It had taken equal
parts of cajoling and
threatening but the visit was finally arranged.
One of Ainsley's hard won concessions was that the visit could take
place in the
minimum-security visitation room. They would still have to deal with
a glass partition,
but at least the room offered a little more privacy.
The guard opened the door in the rear of the room and Donna shuffled
in. It was obvious
that she was in pain. But the thing that struck Josh, in fact the
thing that struck them all
was the look in her eyes. It was fear, pure and simple. There was no
escaping it. She
inched over to the chair directly across from Josh and sat down.
"Donna?" he asked tentatively "Are you ok sweetheart?"
"I'm fine." she said "Are you ok? You look tired-have you been
getting enough sleep?"
"Don't worry about me Donna. What did the Dr. say?"
"He said I'm fine. Just a concussion, no fracture."
"Donna, I still want you to be seen in a real hospital. I'm gonna
try..."
"NO!" her scream startled everyone in the room.
"Donna? What is it?"
"No hospital visits. I won't go. I won't leave here because when I
come back they will do
another...another search." she said as she struggled to hold back her
tears.
At that precise instant, Josh knew what it felt like to have your
heart break. He was
completely overcome with feelings of helplessness. He peered deep
into Donna's eyes
looking for some trace of the light that used to reside there. He
could still see it, well feel
it more than see it, but it was buried under so much fear and pain
that he wondered what
it was going to take to get it back again. Whatever it took, he knew
he was willing to do
it.
"Ok, Ok. Whatever you want." Josh said soothingly and Donna seemed to
calm a little.
"Listen Donna" Toby said stepping towards the window. He desperately
wanted to give
her something to hold on to. "The cyber sleuths think they have a
solid lead. They are
close-very close. So I just need you to hold on for a little while
longer. Then we can get
you back to work because frankly, we're all tired of trying to handle
Josh without you
and the temp pool has barricaded their door and they are refusing to
send anyone else
up."
A small played on Donna's lips.
"Do you really think I'll be back soon?" she asked earnestly.
"I know you will" Toby said trying to impart some of his confidence
to Donna
"But after everything that's been said, everything that's been
written in the paper...I'm
not sure the President will want me to come back.."
"Don't even say that" CJ jumped in "I'll handle the media. Everything
will be fine. I have
a list you know" she whispered conspiratorially "Its of all the
people who have pissed me
off by the way they handled this story. I'm gonna start at the top
and work my way down
and by the time I'm done, there are gonna be writers crying over
their laptops from one
end of this country to the other."
"Oh goody. I haven't seen CJ decimate the press corps in quite
awhile." Sam said, hoping
that his light-hearted tone might brighten Donna's spirits.
The warden came in to signal that the visit was over.
Josh leaned forward, not caring anymore about the rules, and placed
his open hand
against the glass. Donna looked at him with tears in her eyes and
placed her hand on the
other side desperately trying to feel his touch through the glass.
"I love you," he said
"I love you too"
"Hold on, Donna. I'll be back soon"
Wednesday
9:45 AM
West Wing
The ride back to the White House was silent. Each staff member was
lost in his or her
own thoughts. Each trying desperately to think of a solution that
would get them out of
this nightmare. When they finally made it back to the west wing, they
scattered.
CJ was surprised when Carol poked her head in to say that Ainsley was
here to see her.
"Send her in," CJ said
"Am I interrupting something?"
"No, not at all. I'm just getting ready for my next briefing. I
didn't expect to see you
here."
"I won't keep you. I was just here to clean out my desk."
"Have a seat"
"CJ, I just wanted to ask you about what Toby said. I mean...is it
true? Are they really
close to finding some evidence I can use or was he just trying to
give Donna some hope."
"Both I think. I know Toby's been pushing hard so I think they should
have something
soon."
"They better" Ainsley said, "I don't know how much longer Donna can
hold on."
"Listen, Ainsley. I appreciate all of the sacrifices you've made and
everything you've
done for us so far and I know this is asking a lot but...."
"What?"
"Well, you realize that getting Donna home isn't the end right?
"How so?"
"Once Donna's home and safe, I want to-no I NEED to-make sure that
Mandy gets
what's coming to her"
"Amen. Just let me know what I can do."
"Well its up to we members of the sisterhood to police our own ranks.
We have to deal
with troublemakers in our own way."
"Count me in"
"Excellent"
Toby walked into Leo's outer office and Margaret motioned for him to
go right in.
"How'd it go?" Leo asked without preamble
"Not well," Toby said as he sunk down into a chair. "Not well at all."
"Anything I can do?"
"Just help me find a way to get her out of there Leo. And then turn
your head while I
obliterate Mandy Hampton from the face of the earth."
"It really got to you didn't it Toby?"
"It's the look in her eyes Leo. Like she's drowning. Like she's
flailing away in the
middle of the ocean. And as long as she's in that place, no one can
reach her. And the
only way we can fix things is to get her out of there"
"Then that's what we have to do."
"I know." Toby said as he headed back to his office to call
the "cyber sleuths" yet again.
"Hey Toby." Leo called after him
"If you're planning on telling me I'm a nice person Leo skip it, I
never want to hear those
words again." He said without turning back to see the smile on Leos
face.
What do you know about body cavity searches? Josh asked as soon as
Sam walked into
his office.
"Why?" Sam asked nervously
"I just want to know. I mean-if the search that Donna went through
the night she got
arrested was bad enough to make her not want to leave that place to
go to a hospital for
fear of going through it again----well----I want to know Sam."
Sam bit his lip. He knew that eventually Josh would find out about
the second search and
decided it was better to hear it from him.
"Josh, sit down."
"Why?"
"Just sit down."
"What is it Sam?"
"There was a second search, Josh."
"What? When? Why wasn't I told? And why do you know about it and I
don't?" Josh
thundered.
"Calm down. I was at Ainsley's apartment when Donna called her."
"When was this Sam?"
"It was the day of the interrogation. After they brought her back
from the police station.
She knew she had to leave again the next day for the arraignment and
she wanted Ainsley
to make sure she didn't have to go through another search."
"What did she say?" Josh asked, no longer able to mask his fury
"She said that she thought they were trying to send her a message
with the second search"
Sam tried to choose his words wisely knowing that Josh was about to
blow up. They were
rough...there was bruising..."
A loud crash interrupted Sam's words as Josh swept everything off of
the top of his desk
and sent it sailing. It was quickly followed by all of the books
being tossed off the closest
shelf of the bookcase.
"What the hell happened?" CJ asked as she and Ainsley ran through the
door. They were
greeted by the sight of Sam's eyes as wide as saucers and Josh,
standing in the rubble,
looking for something else to throw.
Suddenly Toby appeared breathlessly in the doorway, not even pausing
to notice the
carnage around him.
"They did it," he said as all eyes turned to him "They found the
evidence."
"Really?" Josh asked stepping over the piles of books and papers "Are
they sure?"
"We're meeting them at Houlihans in 30 minutes." Toby said grasping
his shoulders.
"This is it, we're gonna get her out."
"Then what are we waiting for. Let's go."
With that Josh and Toby bolted from the office with Ainsley right
behind.
"Call us as soon as you know anything" Sam called after their
retreating backs as he and
CJ leaned over to pick up the mess and try to restore order to Josh's
office.
Wednesday
11:30 AM
Houlihan's Pub
Josh looked nervously from Ainsley to the "cyber sleuth" whose name
he had found out
was Chad (no last name just Chad) and back again.
"What exactly do these records prove?" he asked anxiously.
"It's actually quite simple" Chad said with an elusive smile. "We
were able to track each
of the cash deposit records back to a single source. In other words,
each deposit was
made from the same terminal meaning that the same teller information
was used for each
one."
"What are the odds" Toby asked "that a person would use the same
teller every time they
went to a bank that size?"
"Astronomical" Chad replied "But we can actually do better than that.
We can prove that
even though these deposits occurred over a four month span according
to Ms Moss' bank
records, they were all actually entered on one of three dates within
the last three weeks."
"What are you saying?" Josh asked.
"Someone deliberately altered the records after the fact. We have
absolutely irrefutable
proof. Now if you need to know who did it, that will take awhile
longer."
"We know who did it" Toby growled. "And believe me she will pay
dearly."
"So do you want us to keep digging?" Chad asked
"Absolutely" Toby said, "I want every single transaction from the
bank, the landlord and
the credit card companies tracked. I also want some concrete proof of
the source of all
this destruction."
"Will do." Chad said. "If you don't need anything else I'll get back
to work."
"Thanks, Chad," Toby said, "I'll be in touch."
"Thank you," Josh said standing up and shaking Chad's hand "You may
literally have
saved a life."
As soon as Chad left the table, Toby and Josh both turned expectantly
to Ainsley who
was studying the printouts that Chad had given her.
"Is it enough?" Josh asked. "Can we get her out?"
"Well, it's certainly enough to get me another bail hearing" she said
rising from her chair.
I'm on my way over to the DA's office and I'll set up a hearing from
there. I'll call you
as soon as I have the particulars.
Wednesday
4:45 PM
DC Courthouse
Josh sat nervously in the last row of seats in the courtroom. He was
both thankful and
amazed that Ainsley had managed to get a bail hearing so quickly. He
was grateful to her
for the way she had come through for Donna. Josh knew how hard it had
been for
Ainsley to quit her job at the White House but she had done it
without a word of
complaint. He made a mental note to talk to Leo after this was all
over about hiring her
back; she had certainly proven her loyalty to all of them. Not bad
for a republican, he
thought.
Finally the bailiff called the case and Josh's heart was in his
throat.
"People vs. Donna Moss docket number 45230A"
"Didn't I already hear this one?" the judge asked.
"Yes sir," Ainsley said seizing the reins "We are here to reopen the
matter of bail. I
believe that the new evidence before you, your honor, casts serious
doubts on the
prosecutions claims that Ms Moss has a large hidden stash of cash
which she will use to
escape. The evidence in fact proves that no such cash ever existed."
"We're not trying the case here Miss Hayes, we're only talking about
bail. And why isn't
your client present?"
Ainsley continued undaunted. "My client, sir, is currently recovering
from serious
injuries she received inside the prison walls and is therefore unable
to attend. I realize
that we are not trying the case here, however, the prosecution
contends that Ms Moss is a
flight risk because she has access to a large cash reserve and the
fact that such a reserve
never existed means the risk of flight moves from likely to minimal."
"I'm sure that your honor is aware that the defendant is employed at
the White House. I
would say that she would therefore have connections which would still
make her a flight
risk." The prosecutor said
"Oh come off it" Ainsley said losing just a bit of her southern
charm "I hardly think that
the president is going to smuggle her out of the country on Air Force
One."
"Still...." The prosecutor began but Ainsley cut him off
"Your honor. We do not agree with the prosecutions assessment of Ms
Moss's flight risk
but we are willing to agree to electronic monitoring in order to ease
their mind."
"Your honor, we still contend...
This time it was the judge that interrupted the prosecutor. "Miss
Hayes makes a good
case here counselor. So I'm going to try to make both of you happy.
Miss Moss can have
bail under the following conditions: 250,000 dollars cash or bond and
24 hour electronic
monitoring with daily "in person" check-ins. Anything else?"
"No sir" the prosecutor mumbled.
"No sir, thank you sir" Ainsley beamed.
"That's all then" the judge said
Ainsley turned around and bounded to the back of the courtroom and
gave Josh a huge
hug.
"We did it," she said jubilantly.
"Thank you" he said brushing back a tear. "Now how do we go about
getting her out?"
"You arrange for the bail. Its 250,000 cash or bond. That means
you'll have to come up
with 10% in cash and collateral for the rest. Can you do it?"
"No problem. I'll find a way."
"Good. While you're doing that I'll go and make the arrangements for
the electronic
monitoring. We should be able to get her out first thing tomorrow
morning."
"Ok then, lets get to work" Josh said
"Hold on Donnatella, for just a few more hours," he whispered as he
ran out of the
courthouse towards his car.
7:00 PM
Mandy's Hotel Room
"What do you mean she's being released on bail?" Mandy screamed into
the phone.
"Just what I said." The voice on the other end answered. "They
presented new evidence
to the judge, and he thought it was compelling enough that he granted
her bail."
"What new evidence?" Mandy asked with just a hint of fear inching
into her voice.
"I'm not sure but I'll let you know as soon as I find out."
"You do that-and soon" Mandy hissed as she hung up the phone.
So Josh, she thought, you're a little smarter than I gave you credit
for. You've managed
to score a temporary reprieve for the fair maiden. But I haven't come
this far just to give
up when I hit a little snag. I just need to do a little revising of
my plan. But trust me-this
isn't over.