Page 7 of Booked for Theft (Vigilante Magical Librarians #3)
SEVEN
How many lies had it taken him before he’d become so comfortable with deceit?
The White House loomed before us, illuminated so it gleamed in the night. Rather than make use of a more private entrance, the Secret Service brought us in through the gate on Constitution Avenue, drove us around the Ellipse, and parked in front of the south entrance into the building. Agents opened the doors for us, and I marveled at the storied, ancient structure.
Once upon a time, it had burned due to a war with our neighbors to the north, but she had endured thereafter, even with the rise of magic and society as we knew it today.
President Castillo waited for us at the stairs, and as Bradley still worried I might take a fall, he held out his arm. I smiled, cooperated with him, and made it up the steps without incident. He guided us to the centermost doors of the portico, which one of the Secret Service agents opened.
He gestured for us to step inside first.
True to its name, the room utilized a blue color theme with white and gold accents. Antiques from hundreds of years ago, from three armchairs situated together near a small end table to a table for six set up for dinner for three, two seats together and one on the other side of the table. Busts of the former Presidents of the United States lined the walls on marble pedestals, each one featuring a placard with the dates they served our country.
“This is the Blue Room, one of my favorite places in the White House. We usually use it for receptions and greetings, but I thought it might be a nice spot for us to have dinner. I enjoy the view even at night. It’s also quiet. After dinner, I’ll take you on a tour before showing you to your rooms. My wife extends her apologies for not joining us. I suggested she stay with the family for the night, just in case there are complications. Please, sit. You probably could use a chance to decompress after today.”
Even the most evil of men could be capable of love, and I respected his family’s dedication to Nathan Castillo. As I appreciated the chance to just sit for a while, I did as he suggested. Bradley beat me to the pair of chairs and held one out for me. “Thank you. I honestly never thought I’d get to see the inside of the White House. It’s such a beautiful place.”
President Castillo waited until Bradley and I were both seated before taking his place across from us. “I felt the same way when I first came here during my first campaign. My predecessor invited me when it became obvious I would win the election. We had dinner, too, but we made use of the family dining room. I prefer this one. It’s majestic yet cozy. When I need some time to just think, I walk across the Ellipse and enjoy the grounds. Sometimes, I sit and read to take my mind off things, and I think about those who came before me—and who will come after me.”
Was there truly any mystery to that, at least in his mind? I doubted it, but I admired his duplicity.
How many lies had it taken him before he’d become so comfortable with deceit?
Did he even believe in telling the truth?
I doubted that as well.
“I understand that,” I confessed, hating myself for being able to find common ground with the man. “I’m the first exsanguinator of my strength—or anywhere close to my strength. There are other exsanguinators, but I’ve learned that few can do the same things I do. But I’ve since learned it’s because I’m not just an exsanguinator. I’m also a mender—and not knowing I was also a mender influenced a lot about how I lived my life, especially when younger.”
“You’re hardly old,” the President of the United States chided.
His tone amused me, conveying surprise and puzzlement along with a mild protest over my choice of words. “I suppose I’m not, but I feel it—the accident has made that difficult some days, especially when the weather changes. But I developed my magic younger than most, which doesn’t help matters any. And once it woke up, it refused to go back to sleep. It is also strong enough it drowns any other abilities I might have, even masking the presence of my mending abilities. Another mender identified it, because some of the things I do with my exsanguination goes beyond manipulating blood. I can manipulate any bodily fluid.”
“That is truly impressive. After the shooting, I began doing research into exsanguinators. I’m afraid I am one of many who made unfortunate assumptions about what you can do with your abilities. And after today, I find that everything I thought I knew about you was founded on falsehoods.”
Interesting. “Please don’t fret about it, Mr. President. I don’t worry about how others perceive me. Well, outside of Bradley, my family, and my friends. I care about them. The rest will judge me as they judge me, and it’s not something I concern myself with. I’ve heard every derogatory term in the book. If I let it bother me, I’d never have any time for more important matters.” My thoughts wandered to my work, and I grimaced at the mess I’d come back to on Monday. “In good news for my peace of mind, I hadn’t scheduled anything other than meeting with Senator Thaddens. He had one opportunity to meet with me about his donation, wanting to add a personal touch to it.”
Later, I’d cry for the man, his wife, and the legacy he’d risked so much to build, only managing a few steps in the right direction before fate had taken him out of the fight. Later, I’d regret my inability to do anything for him.
“Yes, he’d mentioned wanting to do a donation several weeks ago after news spread of your escape from captivity.” President Castillo looked me over as though truly seeing me for the first time. “You’re positively gaunt compared to when you’d attended the funeral.”
I nodded; gaining weight would continue to be a process, lengthy on Dr. Mansfield’s insistence I take my time to prevent problems with excessive gain later. “I’m on a fairly strict diet to make certain I regain weight at a healthy rate. Generally, I’m allowed to eat what I want, but I’m not supposed to eat excessively—or indulge in certain treats.”
“She means chocolate pudding and cheesecake. After I brought her home, I’d gotten us a cheesecake and some chocolate pudding. I left her alone for an hour to run an errand. When I got back, I found her sound asleep on our couch, the cheesecake was gone, and the pudding was gone. The cake platter was on the coffee table along with the pudding bowls. She made herself rather ill with that stunt. Now, all desserts enter our home under strict supervision.”
“I have zero restraint when cheesecake is involved. Apparently, it’s a coping mechanism of some sort. Dr. Mansfield flipped when she found out I’d gorged on an entire cheesecake.” I giggled at the memory, as I’d endured an hour of being scolded, including a lecture on how I needed to avoid abusing my poor digestive system. “I learned my lesson. I don’t trust myself around cheesecake now, so I ask Bradley to bring me a single slice. I was put on the diet after the cheesecake incident. Fortunately, that binge seems to have been a one-off.”
“I’m blaming separation anxiety,” Bradley confessed. “It was the first time she’d actually been left completely alone since she escaped from her kidnappers. Rather than call or text me every other minute, she ate the cheesecake. I’ve since encouraged her to text or call me if she starts becoming anxious.”
I leaned over, grabbed my purse, and set it on the table, pulling out a collection of bottles I’d stuffed inside to take to work. Fortunately for my sanity, I’d grabbed my entire stash, sparing Bradley from trying to locate everything I needed. I selected the appropriate bottle and offered it to President Castillo. “I have this in case I start having anxiety over being separated from Bradley or people I know for long. I don’t like taking that specific drug, but it’s the only one that works without bad side effects. It took us six to find that one. They all change your blood chemistry in some fashion or another, and this one is the least uncomfortable to my senses. And once I take it, I’m aware of it until the dose wears off. I’ve gotten used to it, fortunately.”
One day, I’d be able to return to life without consequences of the foot surgery that had saved my life, but it would take a while. Little by little, we worked at restoring my independence. I did better when driving myself somewhere, knowing I would be taking myself home.
I had more trouble when people left me alone than when I went off on my own.
The President of the United States examined the label, and after a moment, he chuckled. “My wife is on this same exact one, actually. She’s not taking it for separation anxiety, but she gets really nervous in large crowds, so it helps her get through public events without being uncomfortable. Your dosage is a little higher than hers, though.”
“I’m usually fine, but when I get anxious, I get really anxious, so I need a higher dose. Fortunately, I can manipulate the dosage if I need to. I can lower the volume of drug in my bloodstream and control its effects. Dr. Mansfield had me experiment with that so I could lower the dosage on the fly. She’d rather me have to take a second pill and adjust again rather than have more active in my bloodstream than necessary.”
“That’s brilliant. If you’re with my wife when she takes a dose, can you tell if the dosage is correct?”
“Easily,” I confirmed. “If you know she’ll be taking a dose, and I’m still here, I’d be happy to check her to make sure her medication is properly tuned.”
“I’d really appreciate that, especially after what happened to Spencer. The preliminary medical report indicated an undiagnosed condition?”
“The tumors were growing in a pattern that resembled scar tissue on the heart, which can happen when the patient suffers a heart attack. I presume the doctors believed he had some form of heart disease that caused him to have minor heart attacks, which damaged the heart without manifesting enough symptoms to be registered as a heart attack. Think of it as the start of a heart attack, but it doesn’t actually stop the heart. The heart attack is in process, but for whatever reason, it didn’t progress all the way. These attacks can do just enough damage to scar the heart. In reality, it was cancer, and we only discovered that because I went to check for cholesterol deposits to clean them up before the transplants. If it had been cholesterol or clot induced, I could have saved him—but I can’t save a man with a heart encased in cancer. It’s just not within my abilities. Until today, I didn’t even know cancer could affect a heart like that.” One day, I would forgive myself for what I hadn’t been able to change. “It took them a while, but Dr. Pilsir and Dr. Won managed to convince me it’s not my fault. Heart problems are often my domain because many heart issues are caused by problems with the patient’s blood. But this? I don’t know if anyone could really fight this sort of thing.”
“I spent more than a few hours trying to convince Emma that Spencer’s death wasn’t her fault.”
Some people blitzed through the stages of grief while others never recovered from the loss of a loved one. I wondered how Emma would endure her husband’s death. It had taken only but a few moments with them to understand they harbored deep affections for each other.
I could only hope she had reasons to keep hanging on.
Rather than express my concerns that she might join her husband in death, I decided to attempt a change of subject. Dwelling on the past helped nobody, and I doubted I would get a chance to talk with the President of the United States again in such a quiet place. “She’s a strong woman. Can you tell me what will happen next? I know there will be a funeral, but what will happen to his seat in the senate?”
“I will select someone to take his seat. In this case, in honor of his position and supporters, I will review the voter registries and select the second place individual from his party, which will suffice until the election. In a way, this works well; voters will have a chance to review the candidates and pick the right person for the job.”
I hoped to never understand how President Castillo could tell so many lies using fragments of the truth. The voters had little choice; the government would pick all the candidates, and it wouldn’t matter who won or lost.
They would all dance to the same tune, puppets on strings manipulated by those who wished to finish what their predecessors had started. Unless we managed to do something, freedom would fully die in silence, lost to even history as the government erased the truth of their doing.
Then again, history was an unreliable mistress, for she was cultivated by the hand of the victor rather than the truth of past ages. At what stage had the United States descended into tyranny and madness, all without us comprehending the reality of the situation?
I suspected I would have to go overseas and learn about my own country there, far from those who had dutifully recorded the events as they had happened.
Perhaps a trip to the Library of Congress might illuminate the situation better.
With that thought in mind, I replied, “Oh. I see. Do you think there are records of similar things happening in the Library of Congress? Honestly, I’ve never paid much mind to what happens in politics when someone as important as Senator Thaddens passes away.”
“You’ve had no reason to worry yourself about it. I didn’t think much of it either until I entered politics. Assuming your fiancé hasn’t completely booked all of your activities until your departure, I’d love to set you loose in the Library of Congress to have a look around.”
“I’d love that,” I blurted, and I allowed my eyes to widen before staring at Bradley.
“I already made a reservation for using the public section of the library,” he replied with a grin. “It was the first thing I did after I got to the waiting room. There was one slot left, and I claimed it at the speed of lightning. We’re scheduled in for ten on Friday morning.”
President Castillo turned in his chair, waved at one of the Secret Service agents loitering around the room, and said, “Please remind me to make certain Bradley and Janette have full access to the Library of Congress on Friday. I’m sure a librarian can navigate the stacks with minimal difficulties.”
Bradley laughed. “And if we have trouble, I’ll call my mother. She used to work in the Library of Congress, so I’m sure she knows her way around.”
“Excellent.” After a moment, he ordered, “Please tell the kitchen we’re ready for dinner whenever they are. No rush. I’m sure we can entertain ourselves during the wait.”
“You probably don’t get a lot of time for just that, do you?”
“Almost never,” President Castillo admitted. “It’s a nice change, especially after how this week has started out. Tomorrow will be busy. I’ll take over the funeral planning to spare Emma. She has enough grief on her shoulders without having to worry about the political drama. We’d already begun making arrangements for Nathan’s funeral. There’s no point in wasting the effort, and it’s not like the funeral home will care it’s a different body, however much it pains me to say that.”
“That’s very generous and kind of you. How is everyone handling his death? Do you know?”
“Everyone’s shaken, but that’s to be expected. I expect many will be taking their yearly physicals a little more seriously moving forward. I’ve already had the schedule changed to resume on Monday, with a day off for the funeral. You will, of course, be invited.”
Of course. “Assuming I can make sure my doctor appointments can be rescheduled as needed, we’ll attend.” I glanced at Bradley for his confirmation, and he nodded.
Information would make us or break us, and paying respects seemed like an excellent way to honor Senator Thaddens’s wishes for the future.
“I’ll make sure the planners are aware you’ll both be coming, barring any unforeseen circumstances. We’ll likely arrange the funeral to be on Sunday next week. Emma mentioned he’d been raised Catholic, and he has always viewed Sunday to be his day of rest, so we’ll honor that. I doubt we can make arrangements for a cathedral on such short notice, but I’ll be reaching out to a few. I’ll admit, I was rather surprised to learn he was a man of faith, but I respect that he kept his beliefs private to the point I couldn’t tell from his politics. I usually can.”
I made a mental note to pursue that comment through research and evaluation of bills in the past eight years.
Maybe we would learn more about the mysteries enveloping the government.
Bradley made a thoughtful sound. “I would try contacting St. Patrick’s Cathedral. Fifth Avenue is a little less than ideal to get to, but they do consider funerals for Catholics outside of their parish. It depends on the schedule, but I suspect the cathedral would be more than a little pleased to have some presidential attention.”
“I will give them a call tomorrow. Spencer loved New York City; every time he was scheduled to go to New York, he was always quite excited about the trips. Due to the usage of his body for transplants, I expect Emma hasn’t had a chance to think about if he’ll be cremated or buried, and I am not sure how the viewing will go.”
“They will prepare his body as normal for a viewing, and they will use braces within his chest cavity if it is at risk of collapse,” I replied, having made the mistake of asking earlier. “Fortunately, his head, neck, and shoulders weren’t blemished during the transplant process, so it’s a matter of putting him back together sufficiently to be dressed and prepared for the viewing after embalming. I asked. I was given a rather thorough answer.”
President Castillo winced. “I see. But having the viewing is important for closure.”
It was, and I nodded my agreement. “Perhaps Senator Thaddens’s will might make mention of what his wishes for the funeral location might be.”
“She will be reading the will tomorrow and begin the process of managing his estate. She mentioned she would rather just get everything taken care of promptly.”
My heart ached for the woman. As I couldn’t change the past, I decided to attempt a subject change, although I suspected we’d circle back around to the senator’s death in some fashion or another. “If you don’t mind me asking, why did you decide to get involved with politics?”
The man smiled. “I wanted to change the world. I’m grateful, as I get ready to leave my position, that I have accomplished everything I set out to do. No matter who is elected, I am confident that our great nation will be in good hands. It’s rare that the candidates are all outstanding people determined to serve our country, even though we do disagree on how best to serve. It’s much like how you became a librarian, I’m just working on a larger scale.”
My awareness that the man was only a small piece of the puzzle that was the government’s treachery kept my temper in check despite wanting to make use of the magic at my disposal and put an end to the problem once and for all.
No number of Secret Service agents could stop me, not if I wanted to end his miserable life.
Rather than fall prey to momentary fury, I considered his words, and I even nodded my agreement with a key point.
I had, ultimately, become a librarian because I had wanted to help people.
“It is just a matter of scale, isn’t it? My scale is just a small section of New York City.” While a challenge, I managed to fake a smile. “While books are a critical part of the services we offer, our job truly is to help people. Sometimes, all we can do is provide a safe space should we be open during a storm. When we can, we help the homeless secure work and direct them to shelters. It’s particularly difficult for those patrons; if they can’t afford the shelter fee, they can’t shower or buy interview appropriate clothes, which continues the cycle of destitution. We try to help them as much as we can, but it’s not always possible for us to do so.”
“If you could change three things about the United States, what would you change?” President Castillo asked.
I recognized I’d ventured into perilous waters, but I suspected the answer would make me appear harmless enough in his eyes. “I would improve programs for the poor, aiming to end poverty and homelessness, improve general services for all Americans, particularly libraries, and work to improve the education system on mundane and magical teachings. Take education for exsanguinators. A lot of work will need to be done to bring exsanguinators up to speed in order for them to be able to volunteer in emergency rooms across the country. Right now, there are limited people capable of teaching them. Things like that need to change along with making the education system more robust for all Americans.”
And, with time and access to the true history of the United States, I would help to prevent another tyrannical takeover of our nation, assuming we survived the government’s machinations.
“Has anyone ever told you that you’re a brilliant woman?” the President of the United States asked.
I stared at him with wide eyes. “Me?”
“Yes, you. While I can’t do anything to end poverty and homelessness at this stage in my term, your other two wish list items are achievable. I can work in recommendations for expansions to public services, and I can work to make certain exsanguinators with the appropriate aptitude can volunteer in hospitals. I will leave the White House with two excellent accomplishments for the American people.”
As there was nothing else I could do, I said, “That would be incredible.”
“I will do my best to see it done. Let’s talk about better things. Bradley, you mentioned you’ve been working on your engagement party?”
My fiancé’s smile unnerved me, as I recognized his expression. He meant to toy with the President of the United States, and he fully intended on enjoying every moment of it. “We are. It hasn’t been officially announced yet, but we’ll be giving out invitations soon. It will be in roughly six weeks in the Hamptons. While you’re undoubtably busy, we will be issuing an invitation to the party.”
“If I can make it fit into my schedule, I would be honored to attend.”
“We’ll be processing our civil union at the engagement party,” Bradley said in a conspiratorial tone. “We have been discussing the serious issue of children, and Janette would rather we have them in legal wedlock so there are no uncertainties.”
As I wanted to see what cards Bradley meant to play, I grinned. “We’re taking all due precautions of course, but we both love young children, so it’s for the better this way.”
“Wise. When I got married, that wasn’t something many thought of doing, so we dealt with the entire engagement period. It was quite frustrating, really. And even with our precautions, our first showed up shortly after our marriage. Then we had two more. I won’t lie, I was quite pleased when those troublemakers left home, though that wasn’t all that long ago. Right now, two of the brats are over in Europe on a tour of duty. The other is keeping his mother company and likely helping the family prepare for Nathan’s recovery. He’s studying to be a cardiologist. The other two brats are studying foreign affairs and learning new languages, as they wish to be diplomats.”
Judging from the man’s tone, he thought they should be angling to become President of the United States. “Some days, I regret my inability to become a nurse. But what I’m doing now is also an important service to the people, and being able to volunteer helps.”
“I understand. Ah, dinner is arriving. Excellent. I asked them to defeat you with spice, Janette. I requested something a little kinder for us, Bradley.”
“I appreciate your mercy,” my fiancé quipped. “This is the one time I don’t mind when Janette cries, so I wish the chef the best of luck. I’ve only succeeded once thus far.”
“That hurt so good,” I replied in my most dignified tone. “May the chef reduce me to tears of joy and suffering.”