Asher chuckled. "Observing is pretty much what we do all day. Reading people. Paying attention to details."
"Yeah, and it shows. Anyway, thank you for contacting us. Needless to say, your discretion in this is crucial."
"Of course," Asher said. "I didn't talk to anyone but Diane about this."
"I'll reach out to her," Seth said. "Make sure she knows not to escalate this up the chain."
Coulson waited until Asher had left the room. "I need to talk to Sheehan, and after that, I'll need to inform the president. Any chance you can talk to Calix in the meantime, see what you can set up?"
Seth nodded. Coulson had reported Sheehan's attitude toward him had changed. The man wasn't friendly and probably never would be, but his previous hostility had disappeared, replaced by professionalism and admiration, if begrudgingly at times. He still allowed Coulson to liaise with the White House, preferring to stay out of the picture himself.
Half an hour later, they were in the Oval Office, where Calix and the president waited for them with a frown on their faces. They all knew Coulson wouldn't call a meeting like this unless it was necessary.
"Give me the summary first," President Shafer said.
"Asher Wylie overheard Annabeth Markinson making a call on an unknown phone to an unknown number. She was angry that someone had threatened Seth and me, implying that was not what she had agreed to."
As always, Coulson had distilled everything into two concise sentences. Both the president and his chief of staff gawped at Coulson. "Well, I guess that ends all doubt about her involvement," the president said slowly. "I still can't believe it."
"I agree, Mr. President," Coulson said. "But the evidence against her is growing."
"What did she say exactly in the call?" Calix asked.
"When Asher started listening in, she was referring to Seth and me visiting her and asking questions about the article. She said she had it under control and that there was no reason to threaten us. With a raised voice, she told whoever she was on the phone with that she hadn't agreed to this, that Seth was a good man, and that she didn't want anything to happen to him, that he was just doing his job. She warned them not to take any further steps against Seth and me. Then she added they should stop worrying because no one would come after her for this, that they were overreacting."
Shafer pinched the bridge of his nose, looking defeated. "Yeah, that doesn't sound like someone who's innocent."
"No, Mr. President. That sounds like someone who was talking to people who were in the know about the affair, the article, the assassination, and the incident Seth and I had when leaving her house. That's a lot of inside information."
The president's eyes widened as the implication of what Coulson was saying must have sunk in. "You suspect a mole?"
"It's a distinct possibility. And considering how close we kept this investigation to our chest, the number of people in the know on all those things is limited."
"You're looking at the FBI, then," Calix said.
"Possibly, but the Secret Service is also an option. They knew about the affair, they have the inside information on the assassination, they've done their own investigation into Platt's sources, and since the incident happened on the former first lady's property, the Secret Service was also informed about the man we saw."
Coulson was right, but Seth's stomach still clenched. The thought that one of his coworkers was involved in this… It was almost impossible to imagine. But he had to agree they couldn't rule out the possibility.
"Mr. President, I have a more pressing concern at the moment. If we look at the events that have happened over the last weeks and months and even years, there's been a clear pattern of loose ends being tied up. The pride bombers, Donnie Smith, Muhammed Bhat… They were all killed to prevent them from talking."
"You fear Mrs. Markinson is next," the president concluded.
Coulson nodded. "The good news is that because she still has Secret Service protection, taking her out won't quite be that easy. The bad news is that if they managed to assassinate the president, we can't be certain they won't be able to gain access to her. Especially since her protective detail is a lot smaller now that she's no longer the first lady."
The president had visibly paled. "What do you suggest?"
Coulson took a deep breath. "I want to take her into custody, as much to question her as to protect her. It will be a lot harder to get to her if she's in the FBI's custody."
"Oh my god…" Calix said. "That's going to leak, and it will be one hell of a shitstorm. I hate that's the first thing on my mind, but how the hell do we spin this?"
"Well, considering I served under her husband, most people won't suspect it's politically motivated," the president said. "It's not like I'm taking out a rival. But I agree we need a story for this. Levar will be inundated with questions."
Coulson looked at Seth. "Any ideas?"
"What we need is a plausible reason for her to disappear from the public eye for a while," Seth said, his mind furiously contemplating all kinds of scenarios. "But I don't think the problem is what to tell the public. The problem is what to tell her kids. Because trust me, they will get loud instantly if we take her in and it leaks. And anything else we'd fabricate, they'd instantly know it was a lie and go to the press as well."
Calix let out a long sigh. "I hadn't even thought of that."
"Take her in," the president said, his tone decisive. "If the press asks, you tell the truth. She's been taken in for questioning in a federal case. No need to give any details because you wouldn't with anyone else either. And let's face it, she's not innocent. We don't know to what extent she's involved, but she knows more than she's telling us. We have reason to question her about that, and her involvement will come out. So it's more about the timing than anything else. And I say we do it above board, without any subterfuge, and take her in as we would with any other VIP suspect."
"Thank you, Mr. President. Agent Sheehan is already working with the FBI lawyers on the legal side of things. We are hoping to get that done today so we can pick her up tonight."
"Do we need to up her protection in the meantime?" President Schafer asked Seth.
He hesitated. They should, but he'd have to inform Director James, who would have to give a reason to Diane and the rest of Mrs. Markinson's detail. That meant a much higher risk at this leaking. At the same time, if she had made the call yesterday, how much time would these people need if they were planning to eliminate her? At least forty-eight hours. But could he count on that?
"Maybe just inform Director James there's a credible threat against Mrs. Markinson?"
"I'll call the director myself," the president said. "I need to make clear this is not politically motivated in any way."
"Thank you, Mr. President," Seth said, and Coulson echoed his statement a second later.
That concluded their meeting, with Coulson assuring the president and Calix he would keep them apprised of any developments. Seth walked him out, blinking when they stepped into the bright sunshine outside. The warm, friendly weather was in stark contrast with the storm in Seth's heart. He'd been aware Annabeth Markinson was guilty of something, even if he hadn't known the details. Their talk with her had confirmed that.