Enemy In the Room (32 page)

His phone rang and it was Paul Burke.

“How goes it?” his colleague asked.

“Fine. Just looking at Capital Tower.”

“How’s the family?”

“We had a quiet Memorial Day. Sorry we
couldn’t join you at the lake. Rob spent most of the weekend at the
movies. And Elizabeth and I just did our usual thing. How about
you?”

“We’re fine. Amanda is going out to do the
waitress thing in Aspen with some friends. I thought she might try
to visit Callie, or vice-versa.”

“Good.”

“Yes. Listen, David, I’m calling on a
sensitive matter that isn’t set in stone yet, but I want to give
you a heads up so you can be thinking about it.”

“OK.”

“Trevor wants to invite President Harper to
the grand opening of our new Moscow office when she’s over there
for the Fourth of July—we think she’s going then. We already have
feelers out to key members in the administration to issue the
invitation. Do you still think our space will be ready?”

“Yes. We’re scheduled to sign the lease on
Thursday, and the space, at least the office portion, is virtually
finished. But President Harper? Why would Trevor invite her, and
why would she accept?”

“I know it’s hard to believe. Trevor told me
last week that he wants to ‘bury the hatchet.’ Not actually get out
of all the stuff we’re doing—casinos online and adult movies. But
try to conform more with what the President is trying to do with
her reform laws.”

“You’re kidding. Why?”

“I’m not sure. He said that he’s just tired
of fighting the issue and wants to move on.”

“Now that we’re about to own almost all the
production assets in the country, I guess it won’t hurt to be on
better terms with the government.”

“I guess that might be part of it. But I
think he’s also ready for a change. He’s directed us to stop
funding the legal challenges to the President’s reform law, as a
measure of good faith. Anyway, we want you to be an early part of
the planning, since you know the new office and a little about
Moscow. The President hasn’t accepted yet, but we’d like to begin
some contingency plans with our media and PR people right away,
from how to conduct the ribbon cutting to the guest lists. So we’ll
need your input.”

“I’m glad to help. Will this mean I’ll be
going over there again?”

“I would think so. Maybe a few days
before.”

“I’m game. When will we know?”

“The ball is in the President’s court. But
we’re having a first meeting in my office tomorrow at two. Can you
make it?”

“Uh—sure. I’ll put down some thoughts
beforehand.”

“Good. See you then.”

“Great.” David hung up and looked at the
pictures of his kids on the desk.
If the reforms go through,
Callie will be out of these terrible movies. God—or Allah—I hope
so!

Then he picked up the receiver again and
dialed an internal number. “Abigail, hi. It’s David. Can you get me
fifty more SIM cards, as soon as possible? And five or ten of those
pre-paid ‘throw away’ cell phones?”

That afternoon at Callie’s apartment in Long
Beach, Kristen was sitting on one of two sofas arranged in an L
around a coffee table in the living room, reading a book. She was
dressed in khaki shorts and a light blue short-sleeved blouse. An
hour earlier she had been sunning on Callie’s back terrace, but now
the air conditioning felt good. She glanced up as Callie opened the
front door.

“Hi,” Callie said, as she came through the
door wearing short shorts and a purple tank top, and carrying a bag
of groceries.

Kristen stood and smiled. “Let me help
you.”

“I’ve got it,” Callie said, walking through
and putting the bag on the table. Free of the bag, she turned and
accepted a hug from Kristen.

“It’s so nice of you to have me back again
so soon, and to let me stay here.” “No problem. Did you find the
key OK?”

“Right where you said. I put my stuff in the
bedroom on the left upstairs, and then I sunned for a while.”

“Not bad for being unemployed, huh?”

“Nope. What about you?”

“Oh, the usual. Classes and then rehearsal
for the play. Kinda wears you out.”

“I bet. We can get dressed and go out to
dinner whenever you say.”

Picking up the grocery bag and walking a few
steps to the kitchen counter, Callie said, “We don’t have to go
out. I got some salad stuff, a frozen pasta thing, and some bread.
Alex will be here in a little while. Let’s just stay in and chill.”
Reaching in the bag, she pulled out a bottle. “I even got some
wine. The fake ID works every time at the grocery store.”

“Fine. I look forward to meeting Alex. All
we need now is my own Mr. Right.”

Callie smiled. “He’s out there. I think I
found mine.” She handed the bottle of wine to Kristen. “Before he
comes, I want to hear about your plans, and we’ll talk about going
to Fashion Island in Orange County. I haven’t been in a while, and
I think you’ll like it.”

“That works for me. Where’s the
corkscrew?”

“It’ll be a heck of a development,” Mike
Campbell remarked, as he cut into a steak. “Your people will love
being in a mixed-use facility, with restaurants and retail.”

Todd Phelps looked around the rustic
restaurant, made to resemble a Kansas City saloon in its cowboy
heyday, and sipped his drink. “You’re right, Mike. The converted
brewery can be a great mixed use development for us and for
you.”

“Man, this is a great steak. Listen, I’ve
penciled out the numbers, and we’ll need to net at least nine
dollars and fifty cents a square foot for your space in the old
warehouse.”

Todd put down his drink and frowned. “But we
just need fiber-connected warehouse space for our computer servers.
Cheryl says that we can lease that kind of space all day long in
Kansas City for about five bucks.”

Mike paused, holding his knife and fork next
to his plate. He looked directly at Todd. “That may be. I don’t
know. But to make the brewery work for us, given the renovation
cost, we’ll need to get nine-fifty. And, by the way, that also
makes it work for you.”

Todd looked down at his plate, then picked
up his knife and fork. “OK. Well, we’ll need to package it so that
overall it comes out in the ballpark of the others.”

“I understand. We’ll sharpen our pencils.
Your lease is the key,” Mike said, emphasizing the point with his
knife, “and we’ll certainly consider that as we build in our
‘financing fees.’”

Todd paused, then looked at his friend.
“Just be sure that we talk like we’re doing now—no more emails or
cell phone calls—and make those deposits quietly.”

Mike smiled. “I got it.”

Todd nodded. “Give me some specifics as soon
as you can, and I’ll do my best to get it approved.”

Mike smiled. “Early next week. I’ll put the
lease proposal in writing, and I’ll call you. Now, please, enjoy
your steak.”

Kristen and Callie were each half-reclining
on opposite ends of the sofa, the bottle of wine and a plate with
cheese and crackers on the coffee table. Five CDs were loaded, and
Paul McCartney was into “And I Love Her.” Callie took a sip from
her glass. “So, I don’t have classes tomorrow until the afternoon,
if you want to try Fashion Island. What are you looking for?”

“Another business outfit like the last one.
At home I just don’t see any like we bought here two weeks ago.
Hopefully I’ll have some job interviews soon, and I want to look
good. Another one or two of those, and then some casual stuff.
Maybe pants. Let’s just look.”

“Sure. No sweat. So, tell me what Dad did to
you
.”

Kristen leaned forward, poured herself a
little more wine, and picked up a piece of cheese. Then she sat
back. “Well, in the simplest terms, he fired me.” She noticed a
small smile and a nod from Callie.

“Why?”

“Not because of anything I did directly
relating to real estate. But really for other reasons. I made the
mistake of letting my personal views become a little too public,
and that wasn’t appreciated by USNet’s top management. Although
your dad didn’t say so, I’m sure that Trevor Knox and maybe Paul
Burke put pressure on him to get rid of me.”

Callie brought her knees up and took a sip
from her glass. “Wow. So you, like, got fired for what you thought?
That sounds pretty much like what he did to me.”

“What do you mean?”

“Don’t you know that he disowned me because
Alex lives here with me?”

“Disowned you?”

“Yes, cut me off. No more support. Almost no
contact.”

“That must be tough on both of you. And your
mom.”

“Not sure about them. I guess it’s that
conservative Iranian thing with him. Can’t stand the thought of me
sleeping with the man I love. And I’m almost twenty!”

“I see.”

“And now he’s cut you off, so to speak.
Fired you.”

“Well, I was disappointed. I was angry and
disappointed in him and USNet a week ago, and that’s why I’m doing
this traveling. I called and talked with the Sullivans. She’s the
Congresswoman—the one I told you about—with her husband, Richard.
By the way, their son Tommy is about your age. You might want to
check him out. “

Callie shrugged. “I love Alex. She’s the one
who knew you’d had an affair with her husband?”

“Yes. That’s why I wanted to talk more with
her. You see, she and I—and her husband—share the same faith. I
thought I knew what to do about my anger with your dad, but
sometimes it’s still hard to put faith into practice. So I prayed
and decided to talk with her, since she’s older and since I had
made
her
so angry.”

“I guess that could make sense,” Callie said
more slowly.

“So the three of us talked. Janet reminded
me that everyone is capable of letting everyone else down. It’s
just being human. And my anger about it would only hurt
me
.
Your dad wouldn’t wake up every morning feeling worse because I was
disappointed in him. Only I would. And eventually that anger would
eat at me so much that it would hurt my other relationships—like
us.”

“Hm.” Callie reached for a piece of cheese
and a cracker.

“So we prayed for guidance and strength, and
then I forgave your dad.”

“But he didn’t ask you to forgive him. He
didn’t even say he was sorry.”

Kristen smiled. “That’s the whole point,
isn’t it? You see, me forgiving him is about me, not about him. I
do hope that someday he realizes what he’s done, and that we can
talk about it. But forgiving is what
I
have to do, not him.
And,” she added, smiling, “I’m happy to tell you that I’ve done it.
I’m free from all that anger and hate—free to talk with him, and to
move on, without all that baggage. It’s a great feeling, much
better than anger.”

“Wow. That would be hard. I think I’m still,
like, pretty angry with him for not accepting Alex.”

“I’ve noticed.”

Callie shrugged. “Well, maybe someday I’ll
be able to do what you said.”

“I hope so, but it won’t come easily or
naturally. Like I think we talked about before, forgiveness is not
a particularly human trait. I suspect that we are only capable of
it if we acknowledge that it’s from God, and if we’re seeking
him.”

“You’re pretty deep into religion, aren’t
you?”

Kristen laughed and sat up. “Not
religion—but faith, yes. Unfortunately many of us have to fail
first to appreciate it. When we run out of our own alternatives and
we hit rock bottom, like I did with that affair. The main thing I
learned through that awful experience years ago with Richard and
Janet is that God made me, loves me, and wants a relationship with
me—like with my human father, only deeper. That’s where the
capacity for forgiveness comes from, Callie. I realize that he has
forgiven me—and for a lot worse. Then comes a time of healing and
restoration of hope. With all that, how can I hold a grudge against
your dad, or anyone else?”

“That’s how you really feel? That you have a
relationship
with God?”

“Yes. Absolutely.”

“How?”

“It’s simple—and powerful. In the midst of
that mess, after I’d seen what God did so powerfully in Richard’s
life, I gave up. I stopped trying to be in charge and instead gave
my life to God’s son—the one who sacrificed his life so that God
could
forgive me. I asked Christ to forgive me and to take
over.”

She frowned. “And—what happened?”

“He did. Now my heart tries to do what God
wants, not what Kristen wants. I’m obviously not perfect. You know
that. I try to find out what he wants—that relationship I talked
about, by praying and by reading his Word.”

“You mean the Bible?
You
read the
Bible?”

Kristen smiled again. “Yes, almost every
day.”

“Really? That’s so random. I can’t believe
that a cool person like you is into the Bible—and ‘faith.’”

“I’m not sure how cool I am, but why do you
say that?”

“I thought religion was, like, for weak
people and losers.”

“No, faith like I’ve described is for
all
people. And it’s actually pretty powerful, like I said.
It’s what’s let me get past all the anger that would otherwise be
eating me up right now.”

“Yeah, well, I see that, I guess. I just
never thought about it. I’ve, like, never been around anyone who
said she had a strong faith. It’s kinda weird.”

Kristen laughed and ate a cracker.

Callie took a sip. “Like you have something
that others don’t have. You’re not even mad with Dad, and I
certainly am. Sort of spooky, I guess.”

“Well, the power comes only from the
relationship, and that’s not spooky at all—and it’s open to anyone
and everyone.”

“Everyone? Even to someone like me?”

“Yes, of course. I’ll be glad to help you
start that relationship, any time.”