Page 92 of State of Suspense

Cox made them wait fifteen minutes past nine thirty.

Fuming, Sam was about to leave when a young male assistant, whose voice she recognized from the phone calls, came to get them.

“We’re sorry for the delay. General Cox had to deal with an emergency.”

Sam wondered if that emergency had anything to do with the shooting of FBI Agent Avery Hill.

They were led into a wood-paneled office with shelves full of books and awards of every imaginable kind.

Cox stood behind a massive desk and gestured for them to have a seat in leather chairs. “I’m so sorry to keep you waiting. One of our federal agents was shot this morning, and needless to say, it’s thrown a wrench into the day.”

“Agent Hill is a good friend of ours,” Sam said.

“Yes, of course. I understand he and his family have been staying with you at the White House.”

“Yes.” The details of their arrangement were none of his business. “What’re you hearing about his condition?”

“He has a gunshot wound to the upper chest and is in surgery now. They’re saying he should make a full recovery.”

“Well, that’s a relief.”

“Indeed. So soon after welcoming a baby, too.”

“You asked us to come in, General Cox. What can we do for you?”

“After we spoke the other day, it occurred to me that in my shock, I failed to mention my decades-long friendship with Tom Forrester.”

“We’re aware of it.”

He seemed surprised to hear that.

“What I’d like to know is how you could’ve failed to mention such a relevant detail to us when we met the first time.”

His amiable expression instantly hardened. “As I said, I was in shock the first time we met. You’ll have to excuse the oversight.”

“You’ve been around a long time.”

“Much longer than you have.”

And he was petty, too. “Long enough to know what information is important to an investigation, especially one as high-profile as this one. I must be honest when I tell you I was shocked to hear that you and Forrester go all the way back to college. And knowing the stakes of this investigation, why, I wondered, wouldn’t you have told us that yourself?”

For a long moment, he simply stared at her, as if he couldn’t believe she’d had the audacity to speak to him that way. Apparently, that didn’t happen very often.

“I can only blame my lack of clarity on shock. Losing Tom is like losing a member of my immediate family.”

“Tell me the truth about his investigation of Bryant. The one that was kept off the books while the two of you continued to socialize with him and his girlfriend, JoAnn.”

Again, Cox seemed flabbergasted that she’d have the audacity to ask such a thing. Or maybe it was because she was so well-informed. “I told you before that I can’t speak about confidential investigations.”

“Even if that investigation might’ve gotten someone who was like a member of your immediate family murdered?”

“That’s not what happened.”

“You sound rather certain of that. Do you know what did happen?”

“Of course I don’t! If I did, I would say so.”

“You issued an all-hands email to Justice Department employees.”

---