People were running around the West Wing like chickens with their heads cut off.
"Well – oh, no sir – I haven't – I haven't – no, not personally, sir. I'm sure – yes, that – when? Next week? Well – yes, I'll have to check with the President's – yes, advance – Why do they call it that? – Yes, that's it sir." It was impossible for C.J. to get a word in.
"Yes, I've read the – no, not the – there is a later version? Well, I'll – yes, my assistant. Yes, sir—"
She rolled her eyes, the phone being held to her ear with her shoulder, and began to look around her desk for anything sharp that could cut a phone cord. Scissors. Letter opener. Machete. Whatever. She could just unplug the handset from the base, but then Margaret would come back and put it back in. No, the only option was to cut the cord. Scissors are probably the best choice, she thought, as the others would probably, you know, electrocute me, or something.
Hark! What is that I hear? Is it… could it really be? Yes, yes it is!
C.J. inwardly sighed as she heard Kate talking to Margaret outside. Now, at long last, she could get off the phone. She didn't care if it had absolutely nothing to do with the world – Kate could just be telling her what was going on with her lack of relationship with Will – any chance to use the phrase "Excuse me Mr. Ambassador, Commander Harper just walked into my office," would be a gift from God.
YES! C.J. screamed inside her head as Kate walked in the doorway. With lightening speed, C.J. covered the mouthpiece and began to speak.
"What's up?" She asked in a whisper-yell.
"Who are you on the phone with?" Kate shot back.
"The Dutch Ambassador."
"Chatty guy?"
"Oh, how could you tell?" C.J. said, sarcastically.
"I heard incomplete sentences being formed."
"Yeah," C.J. said, leaning back in her chair. "So, what's up?"
"Something really strange – a Secret Service car crashed."
"It crashed?"
"Yes, but we don't know who was in it."
C.J. sat up again, concerned. "We don't know who was in it?"
"No. Details are sketchy."
"Alright," C.J. said, taking her hand off the mouth piece. "Mr. Ambassador? I'm going to have to get back to you. Commander Harper just walked into my office and there's a bit of a situation. Thank you, truly, for all the candid insight on the President's visit."
She hung up the phone and stared at her desk for a second, then looked back up at Kate.
"Where are we meeting?"
"Situation Room."
C.J. shook her head. "How can we not know who was in the car?"
"Both campaigns are in town this week. We've got a lot of cars out there, and – the crash occurred in an area of bad cell phone reception."
"You're kidding," C.J. said, her eyebrows raised. "Bad cell phone reception?"
"Yeah."
"Don't they – don't they have communication systems in the cars? Or, satellite phones, or something like that?"
"All the cars are equipped with satellite communication, but we think most of the equipment was damaged upon impact. Another car just got there, so we should know who was in it soon."
"And they'll have satellite phones?"
"Working satellite phones."
"Okay," C.J. said, finally standing up. "Let's go."
Kate watched as C.J. put on her suit jacket and started to step out when Margaret walked in.
"C.J., you have Josh on line three."
"Can you take –"
"He said it was urgent," Margaret interrupted, a concerned look on her face.
"Okay."
C.J. returned to her desk and picked up the phone, putting it on speakerphone, as Kate sat down the chair in front of C.J.'s desk.
"Josh? What's up?"
"Do you guys know about the car that crashed?" Josh said immediately, skipping all greetings.
"Yeah, I just found out. Why, do you know anything?"
"It – it was – Leo was in the car, C.J."
C.J.'s face turned pale. She looked at Kate briefly and then returned to staring at the phone.
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah."
"Josh, it's Kate," Commander Harper interjected. "NSC doesn't even know, the Secret Service told us only that there were unverified reports, so how are you certain it was Leo?"
"Annabeth Schott. She was in the car that was five minutes out. She managed to get through to me on her cell."
"And she's sure," C.J. began, "and I mean completely sure, that it was Leo?"
"Annabeth put him in the car. She knows, and she's pretty shaken up."
"Ambulances were on the scene," Kate said quietly to C.J.
Taking that fact into account, C.J. replied with a breathless "Okay." She then continued, asking, "Josh, do you know where Leo was taken?"
"G.W., and Donna and I are heading there now." He paused for a minute. "C.J., you have to tell the President."
"I – I know that – it's just – I don't want to have to tell him until we're entirely sure that it was Leo in the car."
"He needs to know, C.J."
"Yeah. I know."
"Even if it isn't Leo. He needs to know that it's a possibility."
"Okay."
"Thanks, C.J."
"Josh?" C.J. yelled, right before he hung up.
"Yeah?"
"Will you promise to call me with any and all updates about Leo?"
Josh sighed. "I promise," he replied, his voice full of sincerity.
C.J. turned speakerphone off and sat silently for a few moments. Her body felt numb. She couldn't remember all the times she had felt like this, but she knew that this feeling had come rather often over the past eight years. No, that wasn't it, she could remember, she just didn't want to. Ripping off the band-aid and exposing the old wounds wouldn't do any good in this situation.
"Kate, go down there without me. I have to go talk to the President."
And with that, C.J. walked over and opened the door to the Oval Office.
"Mr. President—"