one coming for us. No one can be trusted. Not anymore.” She took a shaky breath. “We’re going to die in here.”
Ellen. Sincere, idealistic, far too liberal for her own good Ellen. Done with it all. Anything Caroline told her was irrelevant. Every word of encouragement and strength would vanish into the vapor. Damn it, they were fucked.
“Someone will help us,” Caroline repeated.
“Keep saying it. Maybe you can make it happen. But I doubt it.”
Caroline didn’t respond to that. She just kept holding Ellen, ignoring the pain in her hands, until the other woman spoke again.
“Have I lived a good life?”
“What?”
Ellen broke their embrace. “Am I a good person?”
What an inane question. “Of course you are.”
“I don’t know if I am. I’ve made a lot of mistakes, made some missteps. I don’t-”
Was she getting reflective because of where they were? “You don’t get to dispute your goodness,” Caroline said. “Your worth as a human being isn’t subject to debate.”
“I don’t believe in Hell,” Ellen whispered. “But I hope Santos and the bastards in this building end up going there.”
Caroline felt brave enough to ask the question that had been biting at her. Seeking the answer she dreaded. “What happened to Daniel?”
Ellen started to weep. “They dragged us off the plane and took us to this cargo van. And they shoved me inside and…Daniel tried to get in after me. I think he knew what they were planning to do. They stopped him. And they shot him.” She put her face in her hands. “They killed him right in front of me and left his body on the runway.”
There was no adequate way to respond to that bit of information, so Caroline put her arms around Ellen again. “You’re a good person.” She swallowed back her own tears. “And so was Daniel.”
“I didn’t stop this.”
“You tried. So did I.”
Ellen wiped her eyes. “We should have stayed in California. Where we belonged. But we thought it was safer to get out entirely.” She shook her head. “How stupid I was. How stupid I am.”
“Don’t say that. Don’t give up hope.”
“There is no hope, Caroline. Can’t you see that?”
Caroline heard footsteps coming down the hall. “We don’t have much time,” she said. “I may not – this may be the only opportunity we have.”
“I love you,” Ellen whispered.
Caroline leaned in for a hug, determined to never let go. “I love you too.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
The Past
Election Night. Caroline was nervous as all hell. The summer passed in a blur, as did the fall campaign season. Their entire family spent most of the chilly November evening camped out in one of the hotel suites they’d reserved, with Marguerite and Sophie bounding around the main sitting area with seemingly endless energy. Christine was in a suite across the hall. Every once in a while she’d send Caroline an anxious text message. She wasn’t nearly as confident in her exit polls as Jack. Both of them were likely to win, but there were no sure things in politics.
Around ten o’clock, the concession call came. Jack left the room to take it. He wasn’t gone long and refused to tell Caroline what was discussed. He didn’t waste any time after that, giving an emotional speech to a ballroom packed with supporters. Caroline shed just a few tears when it was over, whispering her encouragement and appreciation as the cameras flashed.
The newly elected governor had many people to thank. She and Jack shuffled the girls off to bed, leaving them with a staffer who would be well-compensated for her troubles. Caroline spent the remainder of the night with Kathleen, glued to the television as more returns came in. A good night for the Republicans since they weren’t currently occupying the White House. Typical for a midterm, but many Democrats were holding their own. There was still no word on Jen’s race. Maryland’s First District was solidly Democratic, so either returns were coming in slowly or Jen had run a poor campaign. Caroline refused to believe that it was the latter.
It was shortly after eleven when Jen’s face flashed across the screen. Caroline grabbed Kathleen from behind. They had their arms around each other as the camera panned back to the anchor, who confirmed the victory. After a quick cutaway to Jen’s victory party, the channel moved on to other races. Caroline and Kathleen started jumping up and down like crazy women, hugging and whooping. They were still hugging each other when Caroline felt a buzzing in her suit jacket. Her