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“Matthew.” It was the first time she called him by his first name and it sounded strange. “You need to address the divorce yourself and keep it separated from everything else. One thing has nothing to do with the other and you need to make that clear. If it were me, I would address the issue with your wife in a national broadcast tomorrow night and give it your spin and leave it at that. I also think you can talk more about the hijacking in the same speech. As a matter of fact, it might say to the people that business goes on as usual. And that you are in control.”

At that moment the door to the Oval Office opened. Standing there was John Van Dyke. The President’s assistant was standing next to him, looking upset. “I told him you were in a meeting, but he didn’t care.”

“It’s okay,” the President said. Van Dyke looked at Susanna, looked at the President, then turned around and left without saying a word.

“What just happened?” Susanna asked.

“I’m not sure,” the President said. “I think when it rains it pours. I’m afraid you’re going to have to stay late and help me with the speech. Is that all right, will you do that?”

“Of course.”

And at that moment Susanna Colbert realized she was now unofficially the second most important person in the United States.

CHAPTER FIFTY-FIVE

When the country found out the next day that Betsy Bernstein and her husband were no longer together, it was as if an atom bomb had dropped. By that evening, when the President spoke to the nation—against John Van Dyke’s advice—the whole world was watching.

He presented their marriage as that of any man and woman and said that even the president was not immune to the problems of the heart, that sometimes people were better off not being together. He said he related to the average couple who had gone through these problems and he wished his wife well, and told the world he would always love her. He also assured the country that even though he might be lonely for a while, the government would run as smoothly as ever and life must go on. He cut short any talk about the hijacking, only telling the relatives of the deceased that they were always in his prayers, and he signed off by saying that his love of his country was the greatest love in his life and America had won in the battle for his affections. He ad-libbed that last part and was rather pleased with it. All in all, he thought the speech was a success. He was wrong.

When the address was over Stanley Markum called his son-in-law and asked if he saw it. “Of course,” Shen said.

“He’s through,” Markum declared. “He will never be reelected.”

“Why?”

“Because if a woman won’t stay with you then she knows something. You have a defect and you shouldn’t be president.”

“Is that true?”

“It’s true if you say it’s true. The trick is saying it so it doesn’t sound mean.”

“I guess you’re right,” Shen said. “Now that I think about it, it does make a man look defective.”

“You’re damn right. We’ll find a way to use it against him, you mark my words.”

Shen didn’t know exactly what the senator meant. It almost sounded like Stanley Markum was going to run for president. But that wasn’t what his father-in-law had in mind.

* * *

The thirties had become a decade of firsts. The first glimmering of a health care system that might actually make sense. The first time a country invited another in to help with its problems and agreed to share its wealth. The first time a president and his wife split up while in office. There was one more first that was long overdue, and Stanley Markum felt that time had come.

It had been talked about decades ago when it looked as though Arnold Schwarzenegger was the most popular man in America, but as his approval rating sank, so did the movement to amend the Constitution. But now it was different. Shen Li had taken America by storm. His ideas were smart, he was charming, he’d married the perfect woman, and his father-in-law had the power, the desire, and the ability to get this amendment finally passed.

Shen had already been made a citizen; he was the best