"Annie," Melissa said as she knocked on the PR director's office door.
"Little busy right now Lewis," Annie replied as evenly as she could, not looking up from the paper she was reading.
Melissa nodded, "I know, but there's something you need to know before you go out there."
"It really can't wait until after?" Annie very nearly whined.
Lewis stepped in and closed the door behind her. "No."
"Oh Jesus, what now?" Annie snapped, finally looking up at the commander standing in her office, frustration rolling off of her in waves. "I swear to all that is holy, I'm going to walk out that door, and not come back if people keep dropping shit in my lap."
Melissa had the good grace to nod in acknowledgment of the public relations director's situation. "I would have waited, but the crew felt it was possible this could come up in your question and answer session so…" she paused.
"Fine, whatever." Annie waved her hand gesturing for Lewis to continue.
Lewis sat down and pulled out a copy of the paper that had been left for her. "You may already know this information, but as we didn't and it was shared with us-"
"Get on with it Melissa. I don't have any time, I have to address the press in thirty minutes but you already know that, so, what the hell is that?"
"A list of requests for imagery of our Hab and the surrounding area from Venkat and Teddy's denials going back to immediately after we evac'd, continuing for two months, and then the final approval two days ago."
"Fuck," Annie shouted. She stood up and threw the stress ball she'd been holding across the room. "I'm gonna kill him!"
"So you know who left this for me."
"Of course, and so do you. Don't deny it."
"Well, I have a suspicion-"
Annie rolled her eyes and cut off Lewis. "Please, even Teddy will know it was Mitch. He wanted you to know. He let you know on purpose. He's always thinking a few steps ahead, something Teddy doesn't realize, or if he does, doesn't give the man enough credit for. I'd bet he hasn't leaked to the press though."
"Yet."
"Yeah."
"He's leaving that up to us." Lewis surmised.
"Probably, but you won't do that."
"I won't," Melissa agreed.
"But Martinez would," Annie sighed.
"And Beck, he's pretty pissed over this."
Annie stood and began to pace. "Beth's a little spitfire; she could spill too."
Lewis just nodded, "Honestly even cool, calm, collected Vogel is heated over this. And Alannah's crew-"
Annie spun on her heel and nearly fell. "What the -? How in the hell do they know?"
Melissa filled the other woman in on everything that had happened after she had left their office the day before.
"Seriously, I should just quit."
"But you won't."
"No, apparently I'm a glutton for punishment."
"So we get through this press conference then what? Who do we tell? It needs to come out, but do we tell the press or what?"
"Let me think about it and I'll get back to you after this. I'll meet you in your new office on two." Annie looked at her watch. "It's time to go."
—-
The platform in the press briefing room was more full than it had ever been when Annie stepped to the podium. There was hardly any room behind her with the combined crews standing there.
"Thank you all for coming today," Annie began. "Yesterday, images were taken of the Ares III site at Acidalia Planitia."
Reporters began to buzz and one yelled out, "What did you find?"
Annie bit back a sharp retort and continued, "The images were taken to gauge the condition of the Hab and rovers. When the images came back we identified Pathfinder sitting outside the Hab."
The room exploded with questions. Annie just stood and waited, refusing to shout over anyone. The racket continued for several minutes before the men and women finally realized that to get the answers they wanted they'd have to quiet down, be patient, and listen.
"Yes, we realize this means that Mark Watney was alive when he was left on Mars. At this time we do not know if he is still alive. Every camera we have is taking images to look for any signs of life. JPL has also reassembled the Pathfinder team and is working to determine if it is transmitting."
—-
The combined group of Ares three and four astronauts made their way to the large classroom on the second floor, which they typically used for training and was now designated as the "Watney Mission Office." Opening the door they found nine people sitting and waiting for them.
The room was large but still felt crowded when all nineteen of them had found seats in a chair or on a desk.
"We thought we might be of some assistance," said Tod Hammond, commander of Ares I, the first person on Mars.
"As good as the engineers and everyone else here are," added Marty Naples, commander of Ares II, "We have a different viewpoint. We're used to thinking on our feet and coming up with sometimes crazy solutions. And yes, the engineers can do that, I mean they solved the CO2 problem on 13 but still."
"Anyway," Tod continued, "Most of us are here. Madeline is on vacation but she's getting a flight back, and Jerry is assigned to Baikonur but he's also trying to get back. Karen is with the Watneys."
"How did you all find out?" Alannah asked.
"Rhodes," Hammond said.
"Terry," Marty replied.
"And then they called the rest of us," explained Ares II doctor Marsha Johns.
"Annie's gonna have a shit fit when she finds out this many people knew before she made the announcement," Beck commented.
"Annie knows," said the woman herself as she entered the room. "I'll save my shit fit for other more important things. Does everyone here know what you told me this morning?" she asked Lewis.
"I don't think so. Should I tell them?"
"May as well, if we're gonna leak it anyway." Annie closed the door to the room as she answered.
Lewis shared what they knew with the other two crews, who reacted the same way her own and Alannah's had, with a mixture of disbelief and outrage.
Tod turned to Annie. "I assume since you're here, you have a solution to this little problem."
She nodded. "I have a friend, well, a mentor. She came and was a guest lecturer when I was in college. I spoke to her afterward. We've kept in touch since then, though very few people know that, and for this, that's a good thing."
"Because the leak can't be traced back to you?"
"Yes. Her husband is a reporter, and can direct us to the right person to leak the story."
"He won't want the scoop himself?" Taylor asked.
"He's not a science reporter and never has been, so it would be suspicious if he were the one that broke the story."
"Now, how do we let the president know?" Martinez asked.
"The president? Isn't that taking things a bit far?" Taylor said, eyes wide.
Martinez shook his head, "No way man. He's the one who will make Sanders resign. Besides, I like President Young."
Annie put a hand up to stop the conversation. "My friend will handle that herself."
"Wait, your friend can get to the president?"
"Yes, they worked together, years ago."
"Your friend worked with the president, is married to a reporter, and is your mentor in public relations, specifically on holding press conferences?" This was from the Ares IV doctor, Marianne, whose eyes had gone wide. "Holy shit Annie, your friend is-"
"Don't say it!" Annie snapped. "Sorry, let's just keep that quiet. Anyone who figured it out, keep it quiet, and if you don't know, tough!"
Marianne's eyes were still wide, "My lips are sealed." She mimed zipping them and locking them with a key.
"I'm going to go take care of that now," Annie said. "If you all meet any reporters in the halls, you know what to do."
When she'd seen each of the astronauts nod or give her a thumbs up, she left the room.
As her colleagues began talking about the situation, discussing solutions to the myriad of problems, Molly slipped out the door into the hallway. She speed-walked to catch up with the PR director who was already turning the corner at the end of the corridor.
"Annie," she said in a harsh whisper when she caught up.
Annie kept walking. "Molly, I'm in a kind of a hurry."
"I know," Molly said, still keeping her voice low, "But I have to talk to you."
"Whatever it is will have to wait. I'll come to find you in an hour."
"No," Molly insisted, then did something no one ever dared do with the hard-ass public relations director. She grabbed her by the arm and made her stop moving. "It has to be now before you talk to your mentor."
She dropped her voice to a barely heard whisper and said, "Before you talk to Auntie CJ."
Annie's eyes nearly bugged out of her head as she allowed the astronaut to pull her into an empty office, watching the other woman check the hallway to see if they had been seen, and then close and lock the door.
The younger woman turned to her and asked. "Do you know my maiden name?"
"Molly, what the hell-"
Molly held up a hand, "I take it that means no. Look, I have no problem with you leaking the information. It has to be done, I agree. I also agree with how you're going to do it. I just have to make sure I'm not implicated."
"Why in the fuck would -"
"Annie, just listen!" Molly insisted.
Annie leaned against the desk in the office, crossed her arms, and gestured with one hand for Molly to continue.
"Look, I barely got into NASA. They do all sorts of background checks you know. There are a million reasons your application could be rejected. My maiden name is Wyatt. When I was a baby it was Wyatt-Ziegler, but that didn't last long for obvious reasons. Mom made the change before Huck and I were even really aware of our full last name. It made the switch easier."
Annie looked at her, her face blank.
"Ok, I know you're not that much older than I am so you probably don't remember the stories, but you work for NASA for crying out loud. How do you not know? Ziegler as in David, former astronaut. As in Toby, my father, who worked at the White House with CJ. Toby Ziegler who was indicted for sharing NASA and Department of Defense secrets and was then pardoned by the president on his last day in office."
Comprehension dawned on Annie's face, "Oh, shit."
"Exactly! Look, like I said I know CJ and Danny are the perfect way to get this information out but when you talk to her, remind her that I'm here. Just because you didn't remember or didn't know what my dad did, and never mind the fact that it was thirty years ago, someone else will make the connection, and I'll be the first one accused. I know I already had my Mars mission and I'm not going back there, but I'm not done here. I want to continue with NASA. Get the information out, sink Sanders's career, but let's not sink mine while we're at it, ok?"
"Alright, Molly. I'll figure it out, or CJ will. She's good at that."
"Yeah, she is," Molly smiled for the first time since the conversation began. "Tell her I said hi."
"Will do."
"Thanks, Annie. I've got to get back to that meeting."
Annie nodded and watched as Molly opened the door slowly, peeking out into the hall before Leaving. After she left the room, the older woman hung her head and shook it thinking, of course, things would just get more difficult. That was the pattern of her life after all.
Might as well get started or it was only going to get worse.
Taking out her phone she typed.
Are you here yet? I need more than advice.
Here, should I come to you?
No, don't even go to my house just in case. Are you at your usual hotel?
Yes
I'll be there in 30.
—-
Todd also slipped out the door of the conference room. He moved down the hall looking for an empty office. When he found one he stepped inside, closed the door, locked it, and pulled out his phone.
"Hello," Karen said.
"I have news."
"Is it safe for the Watneys to hear straight from you, or do I need to tell them?"
"Are you with them?"
"Yeah. I stepped outside to answer the phone, though."
"Go on back in and put it on speaker."
"Ok, hold on a second."
He could hear her moving into the room and explaining who was on the phone.
"Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Watney."
"Hello Commander Hammond," Grace said.
"You have news for us?" Timothy asked.
"I do and I'm not sure you're going to like it." He went on to explain what the crews had learned about the image requests.
"Thank you for telling us," Timothy said tightly then looked at Karen.
"Thanks, Todd. Talk to you later."
Grace sat, taking deep breaths, jaw clenched as were her hands. She closed her eyes for a solid minute while she continued with her deep breathing. Both Karen and Tim knew her well enough to know not to speak to her until she spoke to them.
Finally, in a very measured tone, she said, "Get online and find the earliest flight we can make to get to Houston today. I'm going to throw a few things in a suitcase."
She rose and walked down the hall to the bedroom slamming the door behind her. The other two heard an extended yell of frustration from her and exchanged glances.
"You book the flights," Karen said. "Call or text me with the time and I'll meet you at the airport."
Timothy just nodded as he moved to the desk and opened his laptop.
—-
"OK brainstorming time. We know Mark lived past Sol 6 and while we don't have proof he's still alive-" Lewis started as she signed into her computer to start a video meeting so Alex and Beth could participate.
"Yet!" Beck said emphatically.
"Yeah, it's Mark. If anyone could figure out how to survive, he would be the one to do it," Martinez put in.
Lewis nodded as she continued working with the computer, opening the meeting, and admitting Vogel and Johanssen who had been waiting. "Acknowledged, but until there's proof, NASA and Congress won't approve any plans we propose. Still, we can do that. We can plan. Again, we want to make a list of all possible ideas no matter how outlandish they may seem, and then start investigating them. Beth is working with the Pathfinder crew, and Vogel is collaborating with astrodynamics." She proceeded to bring Ares I and II up to date on everything the two had shared in the meeting the evening before.
Alannah moved to the largest whiteboard on the side of the room and split it into columns she then labeled them: rescue, keeping Mark alive, misc.
The room quickly became loud as people called out questions and comments from every corner.
"So, what do we think?"
"Well, we can add: sending Ares IV supplies to him to keep him alive."
"Yeah, and building a new probe just for him and sending it."
"As for rescue, can the Hermes rehab be sped up?"
"Yeah, if it can, we could launch in the next Hohmann Transfer window a year from now instead of waiting for another three?
"How bad was it when you guys got back?"
Lewis shrugged, "Everything was working within mission parameters. How long it would take, I don't know. I guess it would depend on how many missions can be sent and how quickly they can be launched. Someone will have to check with all the rocket suppliers and see what they have available for use."
"Crazy is ok you said?"
Neither Melissa nor Alannah were sure who'd asked, but Melissa replied, "Yes."
"How far is it from your Hab to Ares I or II sites?"
"What the hell? That is crazy!"
"He already made the trip to get Pathfinder and that's not easy. We left supplies behind just like you guys did. They're both still standing last we checked, and all of the systems were working when we left."
"There is 30 sols worth of food in each of them. That would last him... what?"
"Another 360 sols, if he doesn't ration them."
"He could also live in them for a while too, with life support that's not so worn out."
"But getting to them is not easy."
"You said crazy."
"We did," Melissa acknowledged. "Write it down."
"Would we be able to communicate with either of those Habs?"
"The MAVs are gone so no, not unless he took Pathfinder with him."
"Can he get everything he needs to live in the rover? They don't have enough life support of their own."
"Possibly, but it would take some serious work."
"Could we land at Ares III and then find a way to get over to our spot?"
"How would we do that?"
"I don't know, something with the MDV maybe."
"Depends on how well the landing would go and how much fuel is left."
"Even with as much fuel as you can save, I don't know how that would work. The MDV is too heavy."
"We have at least a year, possibly three years to make adjustments to make it lighter, or to figure out what we can do to make it lighter after we land."
"Yeah, couldn't we dump stuff we don't need then?"
"Like what?"
"I don't know but something."
"We'd also have to figure out a way to have Mark sit safely with us."
"Yeah but if the other option is for him to load up all the life support in the rover and drive there. I'd say the MDV is less crazy."
"Put them both on the list and get the engineers and designers for each to start working on possible plans."
"Can any of the satellites be reprogrammed to help us with communication?"
"I don't know but we can ask."
"Is there any way we can counteract the radiation he's being exposed to?"
"We might be able to send iodine tablets on the personalized supply mission."
"How much longer will the Hab last?"
"What will he do if it decompresses and can't be reinflated and pressurized? Where will he live?"
"Add all of that to the lists," Melissa said. "Anything else?"
No one spoke.
"Then it's time to decide who is best qualified to handle each item."
—-
Annie's head was on a swivel as she walked across the hotel lobby. There was no reason a reporter would see her here, but if they did they were sure to ask why, and she didn't want anyone figuring it out. She'd thought about keeping her sunglasses on but decided that would look even more suspicious. She was trying to remain inconspicuous.
Hoping to avoid being seen she chose not to use the elevator and instead went around the corner to the stairs. She was glad for her daily cardio workout as she reached the fourth floor but by the time she hit the eighth floor, she was cursing herself for being so paranoid.
She stopped on the eighth-floor landing long enough to catch her breath before peeking out the door to see if anyone was in the hall. Seeing no one, she opened the door and walked quickly down to find room 823. Finding it, she noticed that it was propped open by the slide lock. Still, she knocked. When she heard the response "come in," she slipped through the door, moved the latch back inside, closed the door, and locked it behind her.
Waiting for her in the room was a tall trim woman with chin-length white hair in a stunning light gray pantsuit and white dress shirt who stood and hugged her.
"Thanks for coming CJ," Annie said to her mentor and friend when she stepped back from the hug.
"I know if you're calling for help, then it must be something important. You know I'm here for you when you need me."
"Still it can't be easy for you to just drop everything and hop on a plane."
"You know I don't have a full-time job. I'm just consulting these days," CJ replied as she sat back down on the bed and crossed her legs. "That was a hell of a press conference this morning by the way."
"Thanks. It was nearly as bad as the one a year ago, and this time Sanders left me to handle it alone. He's such a chicken shit!"
"You handled those reporters like you were born to do it."
"It just frustrates the hell out of me when I have to make an announcement and try to slip out without answering any questions. They have a million of them, as does the rest of the country and I have no answers. None of us do, none that we can give them anyway."
CJ raised an eyebrow, "Ah so that's what this is about, why I'm here."
The younger woman nodded.
"Ok, so what do you need?"
Annie pulled a folded piece of paper out of her purse, a copy of the piece of paper that Lewis had given her just hours ago.
"This," she said, "is the answer to at least one of the questions everyone is asking, and we need to make sure the right people know about it, but I can't have anything to do with it or I would have leaked it already."
CJ opened the paper and read it showing very little reaction merely a glance at Annie over the paper before she responded. "I see. Well, we can handle this."
"I knew you could, that's why I asked you. I only found out this morning, right before the damn press conference. I mean I knew the request had been made, or at least I had heard the rumor, but it wasn't confirmed until this morning. Someone decided Mark's crew needed to be in the know. Fortunately, they were smart enough to bring it to me and not act on their own. Now that I know that the information has been spread around the building, something has to be done. The astronauts insisted, not that I wouldn't have found a way to let it out anyway if it had been brought to me first, but they're pissed. If we don't handle this, they will."
"Understandable. They were close to him and are rightfully concerned that they left him behind and now he might still die. They're probably suffering from survivor's guilt."
"They might be, I'm sure the program psychiatrist is on it, but it's not just his crew. All four of the Ares main crews know. Five is the only group that doesn't and I wouldn't even put a bet on that, by now someone has probably told them. As a whole, they are livid. As I said, they'll go to the press themselves if this isn't out soon. Some of them would be willing to tank their careers over it. They were the ones that also insisted the president be informed as soon as possible."
CJ took out her phone and tapped out a short message, then said, "Also not a problem."
"There is an additional wrinkle though that means we have to be extra careful in how we do this."
"Okay."
Annie thought for a moment, trying to decide the simplest way to explain. Finally, she said, "Molly said to say hi."
"Oh shit!"
"That's what I said, well, after she explained it. Somehow that piece of NASA history wasn't in the PR historical records I was given when hired, and it damn well should have been."
"Well I'm sure Toby will be glad to know someone has forgotten," CJ shook her head and rolled her eyes. "Okay, we can do this. I'm going to check out now, get on a plane to DC, and meet with Charlie as I just requested." She held up her phone. "I'll have Danny meet me there. Molly didn't happen to mention if she told her mother or her father did she?"
"No, she didn't."
"I'm betting she's smart enough to realize she shouldn't tell anyone."
"I'm not sure she even had time to think. She just found out this morning after the press conference. I was in the meeting, told the crews I'd handle it, then she chased me down."
"All the better then." CJ began grabbing things from around the room and throwing them into her suitcase. "I'll message you tonight after I've talked to everyone. I can make a stop at Andy's, her mother's, after the White House, and then take a train or short flight up to New York."
"Thank you," Annie repeated and hugged her friend once more. "The astronauts are going to want to buy you a drink after this is all over."
CJ laughed. "I might just take them up on that. Go ahead and get back to work. I promise that I'll message or call tonight and we'll make sure this is out there by morning at the latest."
Annie left in the same cloak-and-dagger way she'd arrived and didn't breathe a sigh of relief until she was back in her car and on the road back to Johnson Space Center.
—-
"Sir, Ms. Cregg is here," said Michael, the president's body man from the door to the residence study. Michael was a recent Georgetown grad who wanted to get his foot in the door in DC and knowing that the current president had started in the same position, he'd applied and was lucky enough to have been chosen for the position.
"Thanks, Michael. Show her in."
The president sat comfortably in a reclined desk chair behind his small personal desk. He rose to meet CJ as she entered the room in her typical style, wearing her familiar slim light gray pantsuit. He suddenly felt underdressed in his jeans, sneakers, and Georgetown hoodie, something he never wore out of the residence unless it was an absolute emergency, and those usually took him straight to the situation room.
"Mr. President," she smiled and said, "it's good to see you."
"It's good to see you too. Sit," he said and gestured to the dark brown leather couch facing the television sitting in the built-in unit on the wall. "Tell me what's so important you endured a commercial flight from California to DC and not just call."
"Well, I didn't come straight from California," she said as she sat down and turned to face him when he sat next to her. "I stopped in Houston on the way. I was called there by a former, well, I suppose we can call her a former student though I was only a guest lecturer. We've kept in touch and I've helped her out before."
"Houston huh?" He sat back and crossed his arm. "So you helped with that briefing?"
"Oh no, that was all Annie, it happened before we were even able to talk. I would have helped her if she'd needed it though."
"You taught her well," Charlie commented.
"She's naturally talented. I just helped her refine the edges. We both know how important that is. She'd called me originally for advice on how to handle the situation, but as I said we weren't able to meet before the press conference and then there was another little problem."
"What the hell? What else is going on at NASA?"
"It seems there were requests for those satellite photos that were retrieved yesterday for over a year now going back to immediately after the incident. They were denied every single time. The requests were made from the day of the incident until two months later, the day of the memorial, and then they suddenly stopped, until the one was sent through about twenty-four hours ago."
"Who made the requests?"
"Dr. Kapoor."
"And though I'm sure I already know the answer, who rejected the requests?"
"Sanders," she said simply.
"I assume you have proof in some form or another."
She pulled the folded paper out of her pocket and handed it to him.
He looked it over.
"Michael!" he yelled.
CJ raised an eyebrow and chuckled softly. "That was a Bartlett worthy bellow," she said.
The young man opened the door. "Yes, Mr. President."
"Get Teddy Sanders, director of NASA here as fast as a plane can get him here, no excuses. I want him in my office no later than six tomorrow morning, our time, not Houston time," Charlie said. "And then call Seaborn and Bailey again and apologize. Tell them I need them at the same time, and tell Melody Astor that she needs to be back immediately after. If she arrives earlier, she can wait in the Mural Room."
"Yes sir."
The president turned back to his former boss, "He will be gone. It remains to be seen if I will allow him to resign or not."
"Thank you, sir. I'm sure Will and Sam can help you with that."
"They will and we're not in the Oval Office CJ. We're not even in the West Wing. You can call me Charlie."
"I don't think so," she said, "Maybe when you're out of office."
He shook his head, "Ok fine, but I think it's ridiculous. I assume your husband knows?"
She nodded.
"So how long do we have?"
"Not sure other than to say morning, probably early."
He sighed, rose, and went to the door. "Michael, please call Allan and Jarrod and have them come up now."
"Yes sir."
Charlie turned back to CJ, "This was supposed to be an easy evening, even with the NASA discovery."
"Sorry."
"There's still more right?"
"What makes you… yes."
"What?"
"Well, there's a certain astronaut worried that the leak will come down on her."
Charlie's brow furrowed as he thought. "Damn it!" he whispered.
"If it comes down to it, it's not illegal. Annie and I are willing to take the fall though if necessary," CJ said.
"It shouldn't even come to that, but thank you. Do Andy and Toby know?"
"They will soon," she said, checking her watch.
"Go ahead and go. I can fill in Jarrod and Allan."
"Thanks," she said, rising and hugging him again on her way out the door.
—-
"You can't just go in there, ma'am!"
Teddy heard his secretary yell just before his office door was flung open, and three people pushed their way in, and two of them came straight up to his desk.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" Grace Watney shouted. "You giant ass. My son has spent a year alone on that hellhole of a planet with no contact with anyone all because you refused to take any pictures!"
Teddy swallowed and did his best to stand up in a manner that didn't leave him looking intimidated by the woman on the other side of his desk.
"Mrs. Watney," he began.
"Save it! I don't care what your reasoning is!" She snapped.
Timothy stood just behind his wife but said nothing. Karen stood right inside the door that she had closed to keep the administrative assistant out.
"Ma'am-" he began again.
"You really should stop talking," she warned him and tried to take a step closer without realizing she was already up against the edge.
"I honestly don't care what you have to say. Whatever the reason, whatever the excuse, whatever else you're going to throw at me. No matter what it is, it's all bullshit, so just don't say anything! If you had just looked, just taken a picture, you could have built a damn supply probe, filled it, and it would be on its way already, possibly almost there depending on how fast you worked. If nothing else, he wouldn't have spent an entire year thinking he was alone. As soon as he had Pathfinder we could have been talking to him. When he gets back to Earth, any medical and mental health bills that NASA doesn't completely cover, I'm coming after you personally, mark my words! I don't ever want to see you again, no matter what you have to say, no matter what news you have of Mark. You damn well better send someone else, because if I see your face again, I'm gonna punch you right in that smug mouth."
She turned and stormed back across the room and through the door that Karen had rapidly opened.
"She's completely serious about that by the way. I had to nearly pull her off Mark's little league coach the one year he played baseball and he told Mark to step in front of a pitch." He followed his wife out the door.
"Ms. Rhodes," Teddy began.
"Oh no, no. If you had any brains you would sit down right now and type up a resignation letter. Knowing you, however, you won't. You think you can come through this just fine. Don't count on me to hold back Grace if she comes at you. I might be holding back Timothy so I can take the next shot."
Teddy stood and stared at the door after she had left, before picking up his phone and hitting the intercom button.
"Yes sir?"
"When is my next meeting?"
"In ten minutes sir."
"Ok, thank you. Please let me know when they arrive."
He sat in his chair, pulled up to his desk, and picked up the file he had been reading when he'd been interrupted. He had to be prepared for the president tomorrow.