“He’s pretty quiet. But he’s always quiet.”

“I told him we should go to a ball game.”

“That would be good. I don’t think Security will let that happen for a little while, but then … He’s with Lem, now. They’re watching a movie downstairs.”

She put the Bible in a box.

“What can I do for you, Nick?”

He didn’t want to say in front of O’Connor.

“Didn’t have much to do,” he said. “Thought I’d come by to see if you needed any help.”

“Cleaning out my office?” she asked. “We can talk with M. T. Pull up a crate. Nothing but the finest accommodations.”

O’Connor patted a box next to her. “Health and Human Services budgets,” she said.

Addis hiked up his pants and sat on the box.

Was it only two months ago, he thought, that we were on Air Force One, flying back from Ireland? President Hanover was napping, and Margaret and M. T. were contending with the raving sister of the senior senator from New Hampshire. She could not find her panty hose and was shouting at the First Lady, demanding that Margaret determine who had stolen her panty hose.

“I’ve looked at the records, made a few calls,” he said to Margaret.

She picked up an ornamental mortar and pestle—the bowl bore a snowy forest scene—and placed them in a box.

“From the First Lady of Estonia,” she said. “If it’s under a hundred dollars in value, I can keep it.”

“What do you remember about the land deal?” he asked. “As far as I can tell, you bought the parcel from a limited partnership for about $30,000. Held it for two years and then sold it to another limited partnership and made about $120,000. How did you and”—Addis stumbled as he referred to Hanover—“he come to—”

“You can call him Bob,” she interrupted.

“—come to invest in this property?”

“It was Bob’s deal. A friend of his brought it to our attention. It was near a river. Said it could be a good investment. Then, it turned out, they were going to expand the nearby airport and Southern Chicken was going to build a big processing plant there. We sold the land to some people who I think were putting this deal together. I don’t remember the details.”

“This all happened when he was governor?” Addis asked.

“Yes, and there was an ethics officer who reviewed all of our finances. So I presumed this was checked out.”

“Good. We should find him. What’s the ethics officer’s name?”

“Flip will know.”

Addis took a breath.

“And any connection with your father? This scummy reporter’s been asking about him.”

“Nick, you know I had no contact with Chasie after the AG campaign … . I wonder what he’d be thinking now, if he were still here.”