Page 3 of Shadow of Fear

“It’s my work computer,” he said and pulled a sim card from his pocket. Within minutes he was booting the computer up. She still stood opposite him and he sat in his chair behind the desk and eyed her. “You going to work like that? Might get a little tiring after a while.”

She cautiously sat. “I don’t think we’ll be here that long. Who are you?”

“Like the senator said, I’m an old friend from Kansas. I started volunteering on his campaign and things grew from there.”

She smiled wryly. “Campaign workers don’t scope out their office when they come in, looking for signs of entry. And they sure don’t use safes to store their computers.”

“Have you seen the political climate lately?” he said then without waiting for her reply, continued. “Security in the Senator’s office is pretty strict, as you know. He doesn’t take many chances.” He cursed himself silently for letting her see the measures he’d taken. He wasn’t a mere campaign worker or staffer and he needed to remember she wasn’t either. She’d pick up on things other staffers or even bodyguards wouldn’t.

When she didn’t reply he changed the subject. “Let’s get to it, okay? Tell me what you saw in the parking lot.”

They reviewed the scraps of evidence that were available from her memory then took a walk around the parking lot. The Capitol Police would be investigating the shooting but, as with most police departments in the country, they were understaffed and spread thin these days. Gavin and Rachel went over the area around, under, and in the bushes, not finding more than a scuffed shoe print that wouldn’t be readable by forensics. They both wore expressions of frustration as they reentered the building and came face to face with Martin Gold.

“Your boss is looking for you,” Gold’s tone was both sneering and obsequious, something Gavin wasn’t sure was possible. The slightly chubby, unkempt man who was an assistant to another senator, always seemed to be there. In the Senator’s business, talking to him “on behalf of the senior senator”. Gavin suspected he was a sneak and a paid one at that, but he had nothing to prove it.

“We’re on our way,” Rachel replied smoothly, her face and tone equally bland. Gold leered at her as she passed him and Gavin shot him a glare, which probably wouldn’t faze the man.

By the time they’d made it to the Senator’s office, Gavin had walked off his anger and frustration and, by the look of her stance, so had Rachel. Instead, she appeared resolute.

"What'd you find out?" Senator Mitchell replaced his phone receiver on its cradle and eyed them before speaking again. "Nothing?"

Rachel shook her head and crossed her arms over her chest. “Either the shooter is a professional or very lucky.”

Gavin kept silent as she reviewed the lack of evidence as well as the steps they’d taken to discover any. They’d still have to get the Capitol Police reports but there wouldn’t be anything on their end either.

The senator frowned then stood. “I have a meeting in the chamber in thirty minutes. Keep working on that.” When he passed her, Rachel cleared her throat and Gavin could see her gathering her resolve.

"My place is with you, Senator. Not in the office working on dead ends."

Gavin met Senator Mitchell’s eyes and saw both exasperation and admiration as he reluctantly agreed, and they headed out the door. He, in turn, went to the senator’s desk and booted up his computer. If there were any leaks he’d find them and he’d find who’d poked the holes as well.

CHAPTER2

Rachel strodea step behind the Senator, making sure she didn't lose him in the throng of reporters and sycophants in the Capitol hallway. The "meeting" had been a vote involving a key provision in the government's funding of energy and, as usual, the Senator hadn't minced words when he passed his vote. Unlike most of the other senators in the room, he hadn't self-aggrandized, pushed his agenda, or made what he hoped would be quotable speeches. He just cut to the chase. Rachel idly wished she lived in his state so she could vote for him when he ran for reelection.

The very part of the man who refused to follow the government pattern made him irresistible to newsmen and voters alike. As she watched him cut down radical reporters on both sides of the aisle she wondered if he was aware of how big a target he drew on his back with each answer.

They made it to the underground hallway that connected the Capitol and office buildings. It was a walk but one that she looked forward to after being in the chamber. She could shake off any lethargy she accumulated through the drawn-out sessions, as well as measure the Senator’s mood.

“What do you think of Hansen?” He asked as she drew up beside him at the bank of elevators. A few other staff and elected officials waited as well, and she tempered her answer. “He’s fine. I’m sure he’ll be of help to you.”

The Senator barked a laugh and stepped inside the cubicle. Rachel glared at a man who was trying to push in ahead of her and took her place at the Senator’s side. As the door closed she saw the irate senator curse her silently and smiled. Sometimes being a bodyguard had its perks.

They made it to the Senator's office in time for lunch at his desk. Unlike others in Washington, he didn't have lunch meetings every day. When not obligated to eat with constituents, lobbyists, or other elected politicians, he ate at his desk. Rachel suspected he needed the solitary time to recoup. His military persona came through occasionally and she knew he didn't particularly like what he did for a living anymore.

“Do you need anything, Senator?” she asked at the open door. He sat and loosened his tie then looked up at her. “No. Take a break, Payne. I’ll see you in an hour.”

She nodded and closed the door behind her then stood uncertainly. Usually, she spent the extra hour reading or researching on the computer in the small room the other staffers used as a bullpen/office. Today, she was restless from the morning's events and needed to do something about them.

She headed down the hall and was at Hansen’s door before she realized her direction. Instead of turning, though, she knocked on the closed door and then opened it. “Am I interrupting?”

He glanced up from his laptop and smiled. His face, set in concentration, suddenly became alight with humor and pleasure. “Nope. Come on in.” He pushed his screen down a bit, enough so she couldn’t “casually” catch a glimpse of his monitor.

She sat in the chair opposite him and sighed. “Any progress?”

He shook his head. “I got the Capitol Police report and it was just as we expected. ‘Random shooter suspected’.”

She frowned, twisting her mouth in frustration. “I don’t think so. Not with the record the Senator has for getting injured and targeted.”

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