Faisal read it quickly. ‘This might make a difference,’ he said.
Her spirits rose again. ‘Why don’t you show it to your friend the Egyptian ambassador?’
‘That’s just what I was thinking.’
‘Please do.’
Gus touched her arm and eased her towards the podium. It was almost time for her speech. One television crew had been allowed in to film her speaking. A script about literacy would be displayed for her on screens that could not be seen by the audience. However, she was thinking of diverting from the script, or at least adding to it, with a few remarks about Chad. She just wished she had some concrete good news to report, instead of mere hopes.
She had brief exchanges with people as the Secret Service men made a way for her through the crowd. Just before she reached the short flight of steps, James Moore greeted her.
She spoke politely but kept her face expressionless. ‘Good evening, James, and thank you for the interest you’re taking in Chad.’ She felt she was close to the line where courtesy turned into hypocrisy.
Moore said: ‘It’s a dangerous situation.’
‘Of course, and the last thing we want to do is get American troops involved.’
‘Then you should bring them home.’
Pauline smiled thinly. ‘I think we can do better than that.’
Moore was puzzled. ‘Better?’
He did not have the brains to entertain several options and weigh their pros and cons. All he could do was think of something aggressive and then say it.
But Pauline did not have an alternative to his proposal, she only had the hope of one. ‘You’ll see,’ she said with more confidence than she felt; and she moved on.
As she reached the steps she met Lateef Salah, the Egyptian ambassador, a small man with bright eyes and a black moustache. He was not much taller than Pauline. In his tuxedo he made her think of a chirpy blackbird. She liked his energy. ‘Faisal showed me the French announcement,’ he said without preamble. ‘This is an important step.’
‘I agree,’ Pauline said.
‘It’s very late in Cairo now, but the foreign minister is still awake, and I talked to him a few moments ago.’ He looked pleased with himself.
‘Good for you! What did the foreign minister say?’
‘We will agree to the demilitarized zone. We were only waiting for French confirmation.’
Pauline hid her exultation. She wanted to kiss Lateef. ‘That’s wonderful news, ambassador. Thank you for letting me know so quickly. I may mention your announcement in my speech, if you don’t mind.’
‘We would be glad, thank you, Madam President.’
The millionaire’s wife in the turquoise silk caught her eye. Pauline nodded to indicate that she was ready. The woman made a short speech of welcome then introduced her, and Pauline moved to the lectern as the audience applauded. She took a printed copy of her speech from her clutch bag and unfolded it, not because she needed it, but so that she could do something theatrical with it later.
She spoke about the achievements of the literacy charities and the work that remained to be done by them and the federal government, but at the back of her mind was Chad. She wanted to trumpet her achievement, acknowledge the role played by ambassadors, and put James Moore down without seeming vindictive. She would have liked an hour to work on the speech, but this was too good an opportunity to miss, so she would improvise.
She said everything necessary about literacy, then spoke about the diplomats. At this point she ostentatiously folded up her speech and put it away, so that they knew she was going off script. She leaned forward, lowered her voice, and spoke in a more intimate tone, and the place went quiet. ‘I want to tell you about something important, an agreement that will save lives, that was achieved today by the Washington diplomatic corps – in fact, by some of the people in this room. You’ve heard on the news about border tensions between Chad and Sudan, you know there has already been loss of life, and you’re aware of the danger that escalation will draw the armies of other nations into the conflict. But today our French and Egyptian friends, with help and encouragement from the Saudis and from the White House, have agreed a demilitarized zone twenty kilometres wide along the border, in a first step towards easing the tension and reducing the risk of further casualties.’
She paused to let them digest that, then went on: ‘This is how we work for a peaceful world.’ She tried a little joke. ‘Diplomats do it quietly.’ There was a small appreciative laugh. ‘Our weapons are forethought and sincerity. And so to finish, as well as thanking our wonderful literacy charities, I’d like to ask you to thank the Washington diplomats, the quiet negotiators who save lives. Let’s give them a round of applause.’