There was nothing from the press at all about Senator Owens's death. There was nothing that touched on the issue. C.J began to feel someone had replaced the reporters she had come to know and hate with pod-people. If she didn't already believe in supernatural things she would have suspected it now.
Caroline had left her office by the time the briefing was over. C.J began to work out how to break the news herself because worse than being hit unexpectedly was being accused of covering it up. She didn't notice Toby sitting on her couch until he coughed.
She spun to face him.
"Toby, don't startle me like that."
Toby shrugged. "Just don't stake me for it," he said.
C.J frowned at him, with a hint of a smile. Mr Giles would not have made a comment like that, she was sure, but then, Toby had never actually become a Watcher. C.J wondered where their relationship stood now.
"C.J, stop musing and talk to me," Toby said.
C.J raised an eyebrow at him.
"Is Charles Owens's death going to make front page?" he asked.
"You know what, Toby, I'll be surprised if it reaches the obituary column. He had a high level meeting today, and no one asked why he didn't show."
Toby pulled out his little notebook and wrote some notes on it. C.J waited for some kind of explanation.
"We're still on finding out what sort of demon it might be, C.J. It seems to be killing people who are keeping secrets, I thought it might be a Fama demon, but it would want the story to break. See if there are any more."
C.J sighed. All the Watcher snobbery seemed to have rubbed off onto to Toby in a surprisingly short time. He started mumbling under his breath, and she could hear him listing the topics that needed to be address by the President this week. Just the old Toby she smiled, and shooed him out of the room.
A moment after he had gone C.J realised that she had already moved all thoughts of Josh, Sam and Leo to the edges of her mind. Moving your boss there probably wasn't a good idea. She picked up the pile of real work she had, including Josh's memo on the new welfare initiative.
Come the second briefing C.J had found two more suspicious deaths from the previous week and the President had organised a meeting for the four of them with Lord Marbury. A Congressman, not at all related to Mark Wilson, they had nothing in common but their positions in the government. And a cop. C.J. thought that his secret might have been that he was gay. That was depressing; that finding out that someone was gay could mean that much. She didn't know what Congressman Anderson had been hiding, but it certainly wasn't that.
She found herself once again in the strange almost timeless space that was the Press Briefing Room.
She told them about the President's plans for remodelling infrastructure planning. And his pleasure at the response to last week's speech at the Colleges' function.
"And the President would like to extend his condolences to Caroline Owens. Her husband, Senator Charles Owens was found dead in his home yesterday afternoon. The police are still investigating the matter and Mrs Owens has asked that the White House not release any details."
There was a moment's silence while the pressroom decided that C.J wouldn't give them any more information, at least not yet.
"What can you tell us about Tim McCarthy's death?" was the first question.
"I'm referring those questions to the D.C Police Department. Timothy McCarthy was found dead in his apartment on Saturday night. He was a detective with the D.C police force and had served well in that position for four years. He was thirty-six years old."
"There are rumours of suspicious, or even supernatural causes," Katie said, giving that thought the scorn it deserved.
C.J. almost dissolved into laugher.
"The D.C Police Department has not made any public statement regarding cause of death. Why are you asking me?"
"Does the President believe that a supernatural explanation might be possible?"
C.J. decided that 'the President knows that the cause of death is supernatural' would be the best answer if it weren't true. She could trust that this wouldn't be a story.
"Define supernatural, Mark," she said instead. "I couldn't make a comment on the President's thoughts on divine intervention, but I think I would draw the line at random alien attacks."
The room laughed and C.J. felt easier. It would almost be over and they would be able to get on with making sure it really was over.