‘So Kang is in deep shit.’
‘And that will make him reckless.’
‘What will he do?’
‘Something drastic.’
‘Can we stop him?’
‘Make sure President No doesn’t strike again.’
‘But the Supreme Leader might provoke her.’
‘He will provoke her, Neil. He must take revenge for Sino-ri. I want President Green to make sure the escalation stops there, and President No doesn’t hit back even harder.’
‘Everything depends on how severe Kang’s revenge is. And the only people who can rein in the Supreme Leader are you guys – the Chinese government.’
‘We’re trying, Neil. Believe me, we’re trying.’
CHAPTER 34
‘I can’t possibly leave the White House,’ Pauline said to Pippa and Gerry on the day before Thanksgiving, standing in the Center Hall, next to the piano, with suitcases on the polished floor around their feet. ‘I’m really sorry.’
Gerry’s oldest friend, a fellow student at Columbia Law a lifetime ago, had a horse ranch in Virginia. Pauline, Gerry and Pippa had planned to spend Thanksgiving with him and his wife and their daughter, who was Pippa’s age. School was closed for two days, so they could leave on Wednesday evening and return Sunday. The ranch was near Middleburg, about fifty miles from the White House, a drive of an hour, more in traffic. Pippa was super-excited: she was crazy about horses, like many girls of her age.
‘Don’t worry,’ Gerry said to Pauline. ‘We’re used to it.’ He did not look too disappointed.
She said: ‘If Korea calms down, I might make it for dinner on Saturday night.’
‘Well, that would be nice. Give me a call, so I can warn our hosts to set an extra place at the table.’
‘Of course.’ She turned to Pippa. ‘Aren’t you going to be cold, riding outside all day?’
‘The horse keeps you warm,’ Pippa said. ‘It’s like the seat heater in a car.’
‘Well, make sure you wear warm clothes as well.’
Pippa made a rapid adolescent switch and became concerned. ‘Are you going to be okay, Mom – spending Thanksgiving on your own?’
‘I’ll miss you, honey, but I don’t want to spoil your holiday. I know how much you’ve been looking forward to it. And I’ll be too busy saving the world to feel lonesome.’
‘If we’re all going to be bombed to smithereens I want us to be together.’ Pippa spoke in a light tone, but Pauline suspected a serious worry underneath.
Pauline, too, had a hidden fear that she might never see her daughter again. But she replied in the same semi-serious manner. ‘That’s very sweet of you, but I think I can hold the bombs off until Sunday evening.’
A White House porter picked up the bags, and Gerry said to him: ‘The Secret Service should be waiting.’
‘Yes, sir.’
Pauline kissed them and watched as they went away.
Pippa’s comment had touched a nerve. What Pauline was hiding was her belief that bombs might really fall on Washington in the next few days. For that reason she was glad Pippa was going out of town. She only wished her daughter was going farther.
She had been shocked by the bombing of Sino-ri. No one had expected President No to take such drastic action without consulting the US. Pauline was angry, too: they were supposed to be allies, committed to acting together. But No had been unapologetic. Pauline feared that the alliance was weakening. She was losing control of South Korea just as Chen was losing control of the north. It was a dangerous development.
She walked to the Oval Office, where Chess was waiting to say goodbye to her. He was dressed in a down coat and sneakers, about to fly to Colombo, Sri Lanka. ‘How long is the flight?’ Pauline asked.
‘Twenty hours, including a refuelling stop.’
Chess was going to the peace conference. China was sending Wu Bai, the foreign minister, who ranked equally with the American Secretary of State.
Pauline said: ‘You’ve seen the report from the CIA in Beijing.’
‘I sure have. The Chinese secret service guy was astonishingly candid.’
‘Chang Kai.’
‘Yes. I don’t think we’ve ever had such a frank message from the government of China.’
‘It might not be from the government. I sense that Chang Kai is freelancing. He’s afraid of what Supreme Leader Kang is going to do in North Korea and he’s worried that some in the Chinese government aren’t taking the danger seriously enough.’