Her father pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes. He sighed heavily and then said, “And you didn’t feel like telling me? Why?”
“Oh, I don’t know, Dad, maybe because I’m a thirty-six-year-old woman? I don’t need to run things past you. You get that, right? You’re not my commanding officer, and I’m certainly not one of your soldiers.”
She watched as her father’s mouth clamped shut, his face turning beet red. But his eyes remained soft. “You were almost killed, Vonnie,” he whispered a moment later. “I almost lost my little girl. Didn’t I tell you to drop this Drain mobile app? That nothing good would come out of it?”
“Seriously? What in hell does Drain have anything to do with this?” Veronica blew out a breath in frustration. “Why are you constantly fighting me on this? Drain had nothing to do with what happened tonight. How could it?”
“You really can’t see it, Veronica? Think about it for one minute,” her father said, traces of anger and disbelief apparent on his face. “Traveling around the world to remote archaeological sites.”
“And?”
“For Chrissake! Don’t you realize how vulnerable this makes you? You barely escaped with your life tonight, and you were in the middle of San Francisco, surrounded by security.”
Veronica looked away, thinking of the Secret Service agents who’d been killed. By wanting to push ahead full speed with Drain, was she being selfish? Maybe her father had a point after all.
Hammond continued. “I know excavating sites is exciting, and important work too,” he added. “But put yourself in my shoes, Vonnie. In a few weeks I’ll be vice president of the most powerful country in the world, and having you trek around the globe constantly is an opening for our enemies.”
She turned her eyes back to him. “So you want me to buckle down, stay home, and forget about my dreams? Am I getting this right?”
A soft smile appeared on her dad’s lips. “Maybe just for a couple of years.”
She shot daggers at him, and his smile froze on his face.
“Maybe just for a couple of years?” she repeated with pure disdain. “Wow. How stupid do you think I am?”
Veronica saw her father’s spine straighten and his shoulders stiffen. She had hit a nerve. She pushed on.
“You’re gonna be vice president for four years, Alexander,” she said, knowing how he hated when she called him by his name. “Maybe eight if you win reelection. And I know the presidency is next on your list. Mom told me.”
Hammond cleared his throat. “You and your mom are my everything,” he said, his voice warm and sincere. “Everything I do, I do it for you, and for people and families like us all over this great country of ours. You know that, yes?”
A true politician, she thought, but knowing there was some truth in what he was saying. Maybe she’d been a little unfair with her dad, too quick to rebuke. She took one of his hands in her own and squeezed it.
“But that won’t work for me, Dad,” she replied. “You’re asking me to put my life on hold for eight to twelve years. Does that seem fair to you?”
Her father sighed heavily. “Of course it isn’t, Vonnie,” he said, startling her. “It’s not right for me to ask you to put everything aside for me. But will you at least consider postponing the release of the new version of Drain until next year? It would give us some time to figure how to work out your protection with the Secret Service.”
For a man who had run the most secretive and lethal entity of the United States military, her father didn’t seem to grasp how the corporate world worked.
“I can’t promise you that,” she replied. “SkyCU has spent a fortune on Drain. They’ll push the app out as soon as it’s ready.”
“I see,” Hammond replied with a certain sadness in his voice.
“But,” Veronica added, once again squeezing his hand. “What I can promise you is that I’ll postpone my own travel until we can figure out how I can do so safely. What about that?”
Her father laid his other hand on top of hers and gave her half a smile, but it was forced.
“Sure,” he said, standing up.
She thought he would have been thrilled with her proposition. She couldn’t see what was wrong with it. Drain would be out, but she wouldn’t be traveling until she received the go-ahead from the Secret Service. She didn’t understand his guarded reaction.
“I want you to spend the night here on base,” he said. “I’ve instructed half of my protective detail to take care of you. You’ll be safe here, I promise.”