Page 84 of State of the Union (First Family 3)

While Vernon and Jimmy remained posted outside the operating room, Brant and the other agents escorted him through a random exit that hadn’t been discovered by the press.

On the ride back to the White House, he glanced at Twitter and found an outpouring of concern for Sam and their family. She would hate being the center of attention but would appreciate the well-wishes. He took a call from Terry.

“How’s she doing?”

“Pretty well, all things considered.”

“It’s such a bummer.”

“She’d say literally.”

“Yes, she would,” Terry said, laughing. “I wanted to tell you I heard from the FBI that they have LeRoy Nevins in custody on the bomb.”

“That name rings a bell.”

“It should. He’s the one who’s been ranting to anyone who will listen that Americans shouldn’t have to live under an unelected president.”

“Ah, right. It’s all coming back to me now. So, he went so far as to build a bomb and leave it at the gates?”

“The FBI isn’t saying much other than they have a suspect in custody, and they believe it was related to him. Whether he was the one who left the bomb remains to be determined.”

“Well, that’s something, I guess. I’m on the way back now.”

“I heard. You need to make a statement about the storm and the resources the federal government is making available, etc. Will is writing something for you now. They’re saying it could take a week to get the region back up and running.”

“Wow. In Massachusetts, it would’ve taken a day. We never got a second snow day.”

“Welcome to the Mid-Atlantic, where snow is a full-on calamity.”

“I always find that amusing. I’ll be there in ten.”

As soon as he ended the call with Terry, his personal BlackBerry rang with a call from Freddie.

“How is she?”

“Not happy, as you can imagine.”

“In other words, you took one for the team with her today.”

“Yes, I did, but she’s going to be fine, and I have no doubt she’ll bounce back quickly.”

“But she’s gonna be hell on wheels—literally—until then.”

Nick chuckled. “Quite possibly.”

“Will you text me when we can visit?”

“Absolutely. Thanks for checking on her.”

“I already miss her, but if you tell her I said that, I’ll deny it with every fiber of my being.”

Smiling, Nick said, “I already miss her, too. I’ll check in later.”

“We’ll be waiting to hear.”

He ended the call as the SUV pulled through the gates at the White House. Inside, he went directly to the Situation Room to take care of business so he could check on the kids and then get back to the hospital by the time Sam woke up.

Teresa Howard, the national security advisor he’d inherited from President Nelson, was waiting for him, as were General Michael Wilson, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the other advisers he met with each morning to review global security risks.