Page 176 of State of Suspense

“We have a plan for that. As the service is ending, you’d ask the congregation to exit through the back door, while Corrinne will exit out the front, accompanied by plainclothes officers acting as fellow churchgoers. We’d have people stationed all around the building to ensure a smooth departure for the rest of the congregation while we take care of business out front.”

Eleanor bit on her thumbnail. “Why do you have to use my church for this? Isn’t there another option?”

“When we first conceived of this idea, we knew it needed to happen somewhere that Cori goes regularly and predictably. We needed a place that has a wide perimeter to allow us to provide as much security as possible. The church checks all our boxes.”

“If it wasn’t for the rest of the congregation being in the dark, I wouldn’t have a problem with it.”

Sam glanced at Freddie, looking for his input.

“We could tell them,” Freddie said. “It’s not like they know the guy we’re after.”

“How can we ensure they’ll keep a lid on it, though?” Sam asked him.

Eleanor thought about that for a second before she replied, “If we explain it to them in the starkest possible terms, that people’s lives are at stake, and if they choose to stay away, we respect that, but we’d ask them not to tell anyone what’s going on.”

“Do you trust them to keep it quiet? If one person tells someone, and it gets out on social media or wherever, it’s a bust.”

“We could work together to craft a message to the congregation that would make the stakes very clear.”

“Does that mean you’re willing to work with us on this?”

“I won’t lie to you… I’m scared of something terrible happening at our doorstep. But if it would get this guy before he can harm Cori, well, then I’m willing to do whatever I can to help.”

“I promise you we’ll do everything we can to ensure no one is harmed.”

Eleanor nodded, but her trepidation was obvious and understandable.

Even the best of intentions couldn’t prevent tragedy. The plan was risky, and everyone involved needed to know that.

“If you write down your contact info, we’ll be in touch about the message to your congregation and other details.”

Eleanor took the notebook from Sam and wrote down the requested info.

“We might have a problem,” Freddie said as he looked up from his phone.

“What problem?”

He showed her a social media message questioning why the first lady was visiting Citizens Community Church.

“Shit.”

How she yearned for the days when she ran around anonymously with no one giving a flying fuck where she was or what she was doing.

“What do we do?”

“Spin it as a first lady thing,” Freddie said. “A quick stop to reach out to community leaders about an initiative you’re heading up.”

“Great idea.”

“Let’s take a photo of you with Eleanor and have your White House office post it.”

“He’s good at this,” Eleanor said.

“Yes, he sure is.”

They posed for the photo that Freddie took.

“Thank you again for this, Eleanor. We sincerely appreciate what you’re doing to help us.”

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