Page 102 (1/1)

At the ti as secretary of territorial affairs, a position he had taken on h her second term It was one of the most visible jobs in the cabinet, and Vickyhi more Still, he had assumed that Chase would be the one to step in; the man had been with her for years When Vicky called Peter to her office, he wholly expected ato discuss the transition to Chase’s ade with a Bible Two minutes later, he was president of the Texas Republic

This was, he came to understand, what the woman had intended froround up Peter had stood for election two years later, won easily, and ran unopposed for his second term Some of this was his personal popularity as a chief executive; as Vicky had predicted, his stock was very high But it was also true that he had assumed the office at a time when it was easy to make people happy

Kerrville itself was on its way to beco before it was just one more provincial town? The farther out people settled, the less the idea of centralized authority held sway The legislature had relocated to Boerne and almost never met Financial capital had followed hu businesses, trading co life on their own terroup of private investors had pooled their money to open a bank, the first of its kind There were still problems, and only the federal administration possessed the resources for raph lines But even this wouldn’t last indefinitely When Peter was being honest with hi the place as guiding it into port Let Chase have his chance, he thought Two decades in public life, with its endless closed-door bickering, was plenty for any man Peter had never farmed; he’d never so much as planted a tomato But he could learn, and best of all, a plow had no opinions

Vicky had retired to a small, wood-frahborhood was e dark when he stepped onto the porch A single light was burning in the front parlor He heard footsteps; then the door opened to reveal Meredith, Vicky’s partner, wiping her hands on a cloth

"Peter" About sixty, she was a petite woether for years "I didn’t know you were co"

"I’m sorry, I should have sent word"

"No, come in, of course" She stepped back "She’s awake--I was just about to feed her some supper I know she’ll be happy to see you"

Vicky’s bed was in the parlor As Peter entered, she glanced in his direction, her head jerking side to side against the elevated pillows

"Ssss…bout tahm…Misss…ter…P…p…reeee…sa…dent"

It was as if she were sing the words, then spitting theain He drew a chair to the side of her bed "How are you feeling?"

"Toooo…day…n…not ssso…b…b…a-duh"

"I’ about restlessly on the blanket She gave a crooked smile "Thasss…oh…k…kay Aaas you…caaan see…I…fff…been…bizzz…ee"

Meredith appeared in the door with a tray, which she placed on the bedside table On the tray were a bowl of clear broth and a glass of water with a straw She cupped the back of Vicky’s head to lift it forward froht had fallen,mirrors of the s

"Do you want me to do it?" Peter asked Meredith

"Vicky, do you want Peter to help you with dinner?"

"W…hy…n…n…not"

"Small sips," Meredith told hiave hiue The woht in rateful for the help "If you need an with the water, holding the straw to Vicky’s lips, which were flaked with dryness, then moved on to the broth He could see the tremendous effort it required for her to s even the tiniest amount Most of it dribbled from the corners of her mouth; he used the bib to wipe her chin

"Sss…sss…fun…neee"

"What’s that?"