Part 24 (2/2)
She gathered her things and walked out of Howard's Bakery.
By ten o'clock that night I was in bed, exhausted from the trip and from arguing with three women. Christina called just as I was settling into my hotel room.
It was a quarter past five o'clock, a quarter past eight o'clock in Was.h.i.+ngton. Not until I heard ”Hail to the Chief” did I remember she was expecting me to meet her for dinner at DeLugo's.
”Are you stuck in traffic?” she asked.
”Sorry. I tried to call you.”
”No problem. I got us a table. How long will you be?”
”Christina, I'm not in Was.h.i.+ngton. I tried to tell you, but our conversation ended so quickly, and then you turned your phone off.”
Silence.
”Christina?”
”Did you miss your connecting flight?”
From the tone in her voice, she was hoping my excuse was simple and explainable.
”No.” I swallowed hard. ”I'm in San Diego.”
The silence was so silent I thought we'd lost our connection. Then I heard her sniff. ”I see,” she said frostily.
”When I heard on the radio that the president was coming to San Diego, I had to come.”
”Despite his warning.”
”Yeah.”
”Grant, the president was trying to warn you. Protect you.”
”Christina, I had to come. Somehow I have to-”
”I can't deal with this right now, Grant. I just can't deal with it.”
This time her silence was a severed connection.
As much as I wanted to make the most of my stay at the historic U.S. Grant Hotel, I didn't feel like going out again and chose a pizza from room service over dinner in the newly refurbished Grant's Grill. I turned on the TV and watched the Padres blow a four-run lead in the top of the ninth to the Dodgers at Petco Park just a few blocks away and went to bed early.
At 10:30 p.m. I was awakened by the sound of pounding. I opened the door to double trouble.
”Hi, Grant.”
”Hi, Grant.”
Jana and Sue stood shoulder to shoulder with conspiratorial grins. I greeted them in my bathrobe.
”You weren't in bed already, were you?” Sue asked.
The evidence was too overwhelming to deny it.
Jana pushed past me into the room. Sue followed.
”All right, here's the deal,” Jana said.
My phone rang. ”Hail to the Chief.”
Jana and Sue looked at each other. ”Christina,” they said in unison.
Crossing the room to the phone, I answered it.
”I'm furious with you for going to San Diego, you know that, don't you?” Christina began.
”h.e.l.lo, Christina!” Jana and Sue sang in unison.
”Grant?” Christina said. ”Do you have girls in your room?”
”No,” I said. ”Just Jana and Sue.”
Christina didn't share Jana's and Sue's playful spirit. ”Well . . . that's just . . . you're just full of surprises, aren't you? I called you because I may have news . . . I was going to tell you at dinner . . . but I got so angry . . . it's important . . . but I don't want to interrupt your party . . .”
”It's not a party,” I protested.
”It's late, Grant . . . and I'm tired . . . good night.”
”Christina?”
She'd hung up.
I signaled to Jana and Sue to give me a minute while I speed dialed Christina's number. No surprise that she'd turned off her phone.
”Here's the deal,” Jana said, as soon as I flipped my phone closed. ”Sue . . .”
Sue Ling reached into her bag and pulled out the professor's ma.n.u.script. She set it on the table in the corner.
”You read the professor's ma.n.u.script,” Jana said. ”Then, you meet with the professor tomorrow morning. Once you do that, Sue will call me and I will do what I can to help you contact the president. Within reason.”
I looked at the ma.n.u.script on the table, then at the girls who were once again shoulder to shoulder in a united front against me. ”You'll get me a press pa.s.s?”
”I said within reason.”
What could I say? I was better off than I was five minutes earlier. ”I still don't know what you want from me with the ma.n.u.script.”
”Just read it,” Sue said.
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