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ht”

“I would advise you to be on it”

She looked up at the cottage “Mind if I crash at your place for tonight?”

“All right,” said Stone

“And shouldn’t you prepare for the hearing tomorrow?” she asked “I can help”

“I just plan on telling the truth If I try and prepare, it’ll just s more complicated”

“They’re going to co they have”

“I know”

“You think you’ll come out okay?”

“I doubt it”

They rose the nextStone put on his only suit Then they had breakfast at the sa the construction workers Stone threay his meal wrapper, finished off his coffee and checked his watch

“It’s time,” he said

“I’,” replied Chapman

“You’re not on the subpoena They won’t let you in”

“Then I’ll wait outside”

“You don’t have to do this”

“Yes I do, Oliver I really do”

The interrogation was to be conducted in the secure hearing rooence It was in an underground room beneath the US Capitol’s Rotunda, and accessed by a secret elevator They grabbed a cab and then got out and made their way toward the main entrance

“Did you get any sleep?” she asked

“I actually slept re used to my desk chair”

“I didn’t”

“My cot is an acquired taste, I’m afraid”

“Yeah, next time I try it, I’ll have to be drunk Slept like a baby that ti to say?”

“I told you, the truth”

“But you need soy And not just the bloody truth Lawyers can twist that all around”

“What do you suggest?”

“That you were doing your best You took a calculated risk based on conditions on the ground A dozen people had died The investigation was getting nowhere You had to try soned off on it The only one whose feelings are hurt is Riley Weaver And he had produced exactly nothing on the case And they asked you to co the best you could under difficult circuoverns you can tell the committee that Weaver won’t want them to hear”

“Such as?”

“Such as NIC withholding critical evidence from the FBI on an international terrorism case? Remember the video from the park? And it also wouldn’t hurt to remind him that your president was, or maybe still is, on your side”

“So the reason you didn’t get any sleep last night was because you were up thinking about all this?”

“I didn’t want you to go in there and get ambushed You don’t deserve that”

“Thank you I think I’ll take your advice”

Chapht around here”