"Clancy, Tom - Net Force 02 - Hidden Agendas" - читать интересную книгу автора (Clancy Tom)

going to be in D.c. next Thursday and he wants
the senator's ear for a few minutes."
"Have Bertha pencil him in for half an hour in the
morning"
Ellis, one of White's father's drinking
buddies, had contributed half a million
to White's last reelection campaign, more or
less legally via various PAC'S.
He'd also given them that much cash under the table, a
nice chunk of which had found its way into Hughes's
own safety deposit box, where it joined a thick
sheaf of crisp hundreds already there.
Hughes had been very careful about living beyond his
means. His public face was exactly what was
expected for a senator's chief of staff making a
paltry ninety grand a year. But under
various guises, Hughes had a fat line of
electron credit. Still, it never hurt to have some hard
currency in case of emergencies.
If his plans went as expected, he'd be able
to use the bills in his box to light his Cuban
cigars, if he felt like it.
"Anything else?"
" "Your massage therapist called. She will be
at your house at seven."
Hughes nodded. Brit would give him a good
massage, that was true enough. But that was only half
of the service she provided.
He went into his office and closed the door behind
him.
Hughes's office was a spartan affair whose only
artwork was a Picasso on the wall behind his desk.
He didn't particularly care for Picasso, but a
picture worth that much on an office wall
certainly impressed people who did care about the old
Spanish dauber. Depending on his mood, he would
give different stories when asked about the painting.
Sometimes he told them he'd bought it at a garage
sale for fifty bucks just to watch their jaws drop.
Other times, he said a woman had given it to him in
gratitude for his lovemaking abilitie
Once in a great while, he told the truth--that the
painting was a gift from his boss--but that was never as much
fun.
He sat behind the desk in a wooden teacher's
chair. In fac the chair had once belonged to his
high school civics teacher Charles Joseph, who
had told Hughes he would never amount to anything.
He kept the chair to remind him that where he was going
in the not-too-distant future was going to be beyond old