The Best Laid Plans

The final note in Leslie Stewart’s diary read:

Dear Diary: It was a beautiful wedding. Oliver’s bride is very pretty. She wore a lovely white lace-and-satin wedding gown with a halter top and a bolero jacket. Oliver looked more handsome than ever. He seemed very happy. I’m pleased.

Because before I’m finished with him, I’m going to make him wish he had never been born.

Chapter Two (#ulink_5ad55f0c-22af-5dbd-adf5-2465b3f8c99f)

It was Senator Todd Davis who had arranged the reconciliation of Oliver Russell and his daughter.

Todd Davis was a widower. A multibillionaire, the senator owned tobacco plantations, coal mines, oil fields in Oklahoma and Alaska, and a world-class racing stable. As Senate majority leader, he was one of the most powerful men in Washington, and was serving his fifth term. He was a man with a simple philosophy: Never forget a favor, never forgive a slight. He prided himself on picking winners, both at the track and in politics, and early on he had spotted Oliver Russell as a comer. The fact that Oliver might marry his daughter was an unexpected plus, until, of course, Jan foolishly called it off. When the senator heard the news of the impending wedding between Oliver Russell and Leslie Stewart, he found it disturbing. Very disturbing.

Senator Davis had first met Oliver Russell when Oliver handled a legal matter for him. Senator Davis was impressed. Oliver was intelligent, handsome, and articulate, with a boyish charm that drew people to him. The senator arranged to have lunch with Oliver on a regular basis, and Oliver had no idea how carefully he was being assessed.

A month after meeting Oliver, Senator Davis sent for Peter Tager. ‘I think we’ve found our next governor.’

Tager was an earnest man who had grown up in a religious family. His father was a history teacher and his mother was a housewife, and they were devout churchgoers. When Peter Tager was eleven, he had been traveling in a car with his parents and younger brother when the brakes of the car failed. There had been a deadly accident. The only one who survived was Peter, who lost an eye.

Peter believed that God had spared him so that he could spread His word.

Peter Tager understood the dynamics of politics better than anyone Senator Davis had ever met. Tager knew where the votes were and how to get them. He had an uncanny sense of what the public wanted to hear and what it had gotten tired of hearing. But even more important to Senator Davis was the fact that Peter Tager was a man he could trust, a man of integrity. People liked him. The black eye patch he wore gave him a dashing look. What mattered to Tager more than anything in the world was his family. The senator had never met a man so deeply proud of his wife and children.

When Senator Davis first met him, Peter Tager had been contemplating going into the ministry.

‘So many people need help, Senator. I want to do what I can.’

But Senator Davis had talked him out of the idea. ‘Think of how many more people you can help by working for me in the Senate of the United States.’ It had been a felicitous choice. Tager knew how to get things done.

‘The man I have in mind to run for governor is Oliver Russell.’

‘The attorney?’

‘Yes. He’s a natural. I have a hunch if we get behind him, he can’t miss.’

‘Sounds interesting, Senator.’

The two of them began to discuss it.

Senator Davis spoke to Jan about Oliver Russell. ‘The boy has a hot future, honey’

‘He has a hot past, too, Father. He’s the biggest wolf in town.’

‘Now, darling, you mustn’t listen to gossip. I’ve invited Oliver to dinner here Friday.’

The dinner Friday evening went well. Oliver was charming, and in spite of herself, Jan found herself warming to him. The senator sat at his place watching them, asking questions that brought out the best in Oliver.

At the end of the evening, Jan invited Oliver to a dinner party the following Saturday. ‘I’d be delighted.’

From that night on, they started seeing only each other.

‘They’ll be getting married soon,’ the senator predicted to Peter Tager. ‘It’s time we got Oliver’s campaign rolling.’

Oliver was summoned to a meeting at Senator Davis’s office.

‘I want to ask you a question,’ the senator said. ‘How would you like to be the governor of Kentucky?’

Oliver looked at him in surprise. ‘I – I haven’t thought about it.’

‘Well, Peter Tager and I have. There’s an election coming up next year. That gives us more than enough time to build you up, let people know who you are. With us behind you, you can’t lose.’

And Oliver knew it was true. Senator Davis was a powerful man, in control of a well-oiled political machine, a machine that could create myths or destroy anyone who got in its way.

‘You’d have to be totally committed,’ the senator warned.

‘I would be.’

‘I have some even better news for you, son. As far as I’m concerned, this is only the first step. You serve a term or two as governor, and I promise you we’ll move you into the White House.’

Oliver swallowed. ‘Are – are you serious?’

‘I don’t joke about things like this. I don’t have to tell you that this is the age of television. You have something that money can’t buy – charisma. People are drawn to you. You genuinely like people, and it shows. It’s the same quality Jack Kennedy had.’

‘I – I don’t know what to say, Todd.’

‘You don’t have to say anything. I have to return to Washington tomorrow, but when I get back, we’ll go to work.’

A few weeks later, the campaign for the office of governor began. Billboards with Oliver’s picture flooded the state. He appeared on television and at rallies and political seminars. Peter Tager had his own private polls that showed Oliver’s popularity increasing each week.

‘He’s up another five points,’ he told the senator. ‘He’s only ten points behind the governor, and we’ve still got plenty of time left. In another few weeks, they should be neck and neck.’

Senator Davis nodded. ‘Oliver’s going to win. No question about it.’

Todd Davis and Jan were having breakfast. ‘Has our boy proposed to you yet?’

Jan smiled. ‘He hasn’t come right out and asked me, but he’s been hinting around.’

‘Well, don’t let him hint too long. I want you to be married before he becomes governor. It will play better if the governor has a wife.’

Jan put her arms around her father. ‘I’m so glad you brought him into my life. I’m mad about him.’

The senator beamed. ‘As long as he makes you happy, I’m happy.’

Everything was going perfectly.

The following evening, when Senator Davis came home, Jan was in her room, packing, her face stained with tears.

He looked at her, concerned. ‘What’s going on, baby?’

‘I’m getting out of here. I never want to see Oliver again as long as I live!’