Like A Bad Penny

by: Evelyn

Josh’s heels clicked loudly against the marble floors as he walked swiftly through the halls of the Longworth House Office Building. It was 6:30 in the morning and the offices were, for the most part, empty. They’d deliberately chosen such an early hour for the meeting. Less people present to explain why these two men were in conference.

He came to the massive oak door and knocked.

“Yeah,” came a voice from inside and Josh pushed the door open.

“Lyman,” said the man sitting behind the huge cherry desk.

“Calley,” Josh answered, nodding his head in acknowledgment. He crossed the room, the Persian carpet muffling his footsteps. Neither man offered a handshake in greeting. Cliff Calley, Majority Counsel of the House Government Oversight Committee, indicated to a chair across from him, and Josh took a seat.

There was a moment of uncomfortable silence. Calley waited, knowing that Josh was the one coming to ask the favor. His silence reflected a power play, and Josh knew it. Ordinarily he was a master at these games, but this morning he wasn’t playing for himself. He swallowed his pride and began.

“What do I have to do to make the hearings go away?” Josh was blunt. He didn’t even have to explain what hearings he was talking about. Calley had understood when Josh had called so late the previous evening that it wasn’t just the routine business of government. That could have waited until morning and been conducted by someone less senior than the Deputy Chief of Staff.

“There’s nothing to talk about,” Calley said cooly.

Josh felt his blood pressure rise so fast that he thought his heart would burst. He almost reached across the table and grabbed the Republican counsel by the throat. He fought for control, knowing that there was too much at stake to risk an ugly confrontation.

“What do you want?” Josh spat out the words.

“Nothing,” Calley replied.

“You know these hearings are bullshit. There was no taxpayer fraud, no late night romps in the Oval Office. Donna and I haven’t been having an affair, but if you insist on conducting these bogus hearings...” Josh started to rise from his chair.

“There will be no hearings,” Calley said quietly.

“What? Why?” Josh looked warily.

“I know better than anyone that you and Donna haven’t been conducting an affair,” Calley offered, leaving unsaid why he knew such intimate facts.

Josh was dumbfounded. He’d come to the meeting ready to offer himself up in exchange for protecting Donna from a vicious media circus. It drove Josh absolutely crazy that he would owe this bastard anything. But he knew he already did. Calley had conspired with Josh to make sure that Donna wasn’t indicted for perjury over her diary lie and had taken the high road when Leo was testifying before the committee.

“What happens next?” Josh asked.

“I’ll handle it,” Cliff said confidently. “First of all, this kind of crap isn’t what Republicans should be focusing on. There are too many critical issues that need serious attention and on which we fundamentally disagree with the Administration. But more important,” Cliff added, lowering his voice, “Donna deserves better than this. She’s a smart, funny, kind woman and I won’t let her become the victim of a partisan witch hunt.”

Josh just stared at Cliff. He hated this man with every fiber of his being. In some ways he didn’t want this guy to do the right thing. He wanted to beat him to a bloody pulp for having slept with Donna. But in that moment, Josh reluctantly acknowledged to himself that Cliff Calley was a decent guy who’d also gotten caught last fall in the cross-hairs of a messy situation. Calley had been wrong to go out with Donna, knowing the conflict of interest. But Josh now recognized that his unwillingness to deal with his own feelings had driven the love of his life straight into another man’s arms.

“I...I asked Donna to marry me,” Josh confessed.

“Good. I’m glad for Donna. It’s what she always wanted,” Cliff answered with a small, regretful smile.

The two men stood. Josh considered offering his hand, but was still too shaken by the knowledge that none of this would have happened if he’d been honest with himself. He turned and walked out the door. One problem had been solved, but the snake was still alive.

Chapters - 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Sequel - A Few Bumps in the Road

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