Not once did she think about any of the babies or their well-being as a result of her and Baron Bell’s activities.

Sometimes life was a stinking bitch.

Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Charles looked down at his coffee cup and was surprised to see that it was empty. He wondered how many cups he’d consumed. Not that it was important in the scheme of things. He knew that however many cups he’d consumed, he’d consume that many more before dawn broke over the horizon. He raised his head to look up at the wall, at the bank of clocks that gave him the time all over the world. For some strange reason, looking at the clocks always calmed him down. As much as he hated to admit it, he was nervous. Sending the Sisters down the snowy mountain and into the waiting arms of Snowden’s people was unnerving him for some reason.

Charles moved his neck from side to side, hoping to alleviate the kinks that were bothering him. He knew what his problem was, and worrying wasn’t going to help solve it. Anytime 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue came into play, things became problematic. He poured himself a cup of coffee and walked over to the window. The snow had stopped about an hour ago, and he could see that it had not started again. The white world outside the window was bathed in a golden glow from the lamps in the courtyard. It looked eerie, ominous somehow.

Charles looked down when he felt something brush against his legs. Murphy on one side, Grady on the other. Absently, he reached into his pocket for the treats that he always carried with him. They were man’s best friend, and as such, both animals deserved everything he had to give for their love and loyalty. Both dogs waited expectantly to see if there would be a second treat, and there was. This time the dogs carried their chew bones over to the hearth and lay down. A sign that their world was just fine. At least for the moment.

Break time was over. Charles walked back to his bank of computers. He saw two incoming e-mails at the same moment the fax machine whirred to life. He was about to click on the e-mails when his special encrypted cell phone rang. It was Avery Snowden. Charles felt his stomach muscles bunch into a knot. “Avery, just give me the short version and the resolution,” he said briskly.