She thought about it for a while and decided there was one other person who might know what was going on. She made the call to Governor Richard Collins’s cell phone.

“Dick Collins.”

“Dick, it’s Ann Keaton. How are you?”

“I’m just great, getting ready to make a speech in Vermont to a convention of the Benevolent Order of the Moose. I’m not staying for the luncheon because I’m afraid of what they might be serving.”

“I can’t blame you. Listen, tell me what the press conference tomorrow morning is about.”

“I have a press conference on a Sunday morning?”

“Not you, Kate. Surely she’s talked with you about it.”

“Not a word,” Collins replied. “That’s funny, she sends us a daily schedule, and there’s nothing on it for tomorrow morning. What time?”

“Nine A.M.”

“At a church?”

“No, she asked for a small auditorium in New York. She’s in New Jersey and Long Island today.”

“That is odd,” he said. “Should I call her and ask about it?”

“I have a feeling that if she hasn’t told you about it, she doesn’t want you to know. The only reason she told me is that somebody had to find an auditorium and put out a release.”

Collins was silent for a long moment. “Ann,” he said, “if Kate had decided to drop out of the race for some reason, she would have given me a heads-up, wouldn’t she?”

“Sure she would, Dick,” Ann half lied. “And listen, don’t tell anybody about this—only you, me, and Jim Marks, our press secretary, know about it. Something’s up, I’ll grant you, but Kate clearly doesn’t want anyone to know what.”

“I understand.”

“So please don’t start trying to line up support for the nomination, just in case. If she doesn’t drop out, you’d look like an ass.”

“I get the picture, Ann. Let me know if there are further developments, will you?”

“I will let you know if there are further developments.” Ann hung up.

There were no further developments.

Chapter 58

Stone was very hungry by the time Ann got home. She came into the study and kissed him, then flopped on the sofa next to him.

“I thought we’d order a pizza,” he said.

“Fine.”

“The usual?”

“Fine.”

Stone made the call.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

“Nothing.”

“Something is clearly wrong. I’ve never seen you so clenched before.”

“That doesn’t mean something’s wrong,” she said.

“Then what does it mean?”

“It means that if something is wrong, I don’t know what it is.”

“I thought you knew everything. Why don’t you know?”

“Because she won’t tell me.”

“Who won’t tell you?”

“Kate.”

“Kate thinks there’s something wrong, but she won’t tell you?”

“Exactly. I think so anyway.”

“Ann, are you developing a paranoid streak?”