The Pentagon Paradox

Chapter Twenty

ADELINE

The next morning, I headed once again to The Senate Building. I had left a sleeping ledger with a note saying, 'I would be back late.'

I can't take him with me when I start questioning everyone who works here. He seems to take any remote accusation against the government personally.

I have no idea what his problem is, but I am not in a position to deal with a grumpy ass ledger. He is already a pain in my ass. I press the elevator button, and it takes me to the basement, where the dining area is.

Today, I am only questioning officers and guards. I have found that employees are more prone to lying. They will lie or play fools, even if they don't know what is wrong. Either way, I am not wasting time on them.

I have hope that, like the Chief, the officers here are cooperative. Unlike last time, I don't hesitate at all. I don't even wait to ask if I can or if I cannot. Since I received my red card, my suspicions have only multiplied. I have wasted enough time asking and taking permission. The dull feeling of failure has haunted me since the interview.

A shiver runs down my spine at the memory. Never again. I have to take them by surprise, leaving them no time to prepare. I storm into the dining room and immediately spot the big table reserved for The Uniform Division officers.

As a Secret Service agent myself, I hope we can quickly reach an understanding. I head to the table, and everyone's eyes land on me. I pull out my wallet and hold up my Secret Service ID card.

According to the autopsy, Millis was dead before lunch was over. This means no one here at the moment was on the same floor when he died, but the culprit had to come in somehow.

There is no way he wasn't spotted somewhere in between. "Does anyone here have information to share regarding the death of the Senator?"

They look at each other, mouths half full, and yet no one is chewing. One of them stands up. "I might have some."

"Excellent, follow me." I take him towards an empty table and tell the rest of the dining area to be quiet as I am recording. They lower their voice, and I place the phone on the table.

"What is your name, sir?"

"Jack Benedikt."

"Okay, Jack. Please begin."

"The day The Senator died, I met a lady in the elevator on my way to the third floor."

"A woman?"

"Yes, short hair, my height. She was wearing heels."

As he continues, I scribble 'short hair and tall woman' in my notebook.

"I think she was new, but I looked for her and haven't found her since. When I met her, I had my access card on me, and then it disappeared."

"Does your card allow you into The Senator's office?" He nods. "I went to the locker room on my way and then headed down here. When I noticed my missing card, I immediately started looking for the lady, but the alarms went off."

"What alarms?" No one mentioned any alarms at all.

"A Russian attack. Michigan has been suffering from those for a while now." A what? Why would Russians attack a Senate building?

"After the attack, I found my card in the locker room. I mean, maybe she didn't take it, but I thought it was maybe a bit suspicious, ya'know." He rubs the back of his head.

So, he saw a lady, then he lost his card, but then he found it after fighting some Slavic people? Doesn't that sound like men just blaming women for everything?