her watch before stepping out of her office building and onto the K Street sidewalk. She headed west towards 21st Street. Back when she first started at M&G, Callie used to enjoy strolling the downtown area on her way to a mid-day meeting or an early dinner reservation, but now she found it increasingly difficult to saunter the streets without bumping into someone she knew. For most people that wouldn’t be a problem, but for the number one lobbyist in the nation’s capitol, it put limits on availability that she didn’t have. Callie soon hired a car service to drive her from place to place. She was through with encountering random acquaintances she barely recognized, and more often than not, spending the majority of their conversation trying to figure out how to end it.
But she was walking today. The TGI Fridays where she had arranged to meet Kacey was less than a five-minute walk from her office. The whirlwind morning showed no signs of slowing down and Callie thought it might not be a bad idea to step out and grab some fresh air. Her mind danced as she hung a left onto 21st street. Before she could turn the corner, Jenny Bledsoe, the chief of staff for Marcy Stillman, was rambling straight towards her. Bledsoe’s boss, the newly elected freshman Senator from Oklahoma, defeated long time incumbent Harry Males in a hotly contested run-off race that came down to less than one-hundred thousand votes. More importantly, it deadlocked the Senate at a 50/50 split between Republicans and Democrats.
Callie knew Bledsoe from the time she spent working in Mike Gorman’s press office. They had gone back and forth a few times regarding Gorman’s irresponsible appearances in the media including what he had said about Callie on television a year or so ago. Callie wanted nothing to do with Jennie and she felt confident Bledsoe harbored the same disdain for her, that is, until she accepted her new position with Senator Stillman.
“Callie Wheeler, I’ve been trying to get a hold of you for the longest time.”
Callie knew Bledsoe was lying, but she played her part. She looked forward to seeing where the conversation was going to end up. “I’m sorry, Jenny, I must have missed your messages,” Callie said with a business-like attitude. “Been busy with the election season heating up…I’m sure you understand.”
“Don’t worry about it.” Jenny Bledsoe stood barely five feet tall, with short black hair, sunk in eyes and a small stud on the side of her pierced nose. Her pale features and emaciated body looked similar to those of a drug addict in need of rehab. Callie always felt a little awkward towering over her the way she did, but was comforted by the feeling she got that the Senator’s aide was actually afraid of her. Naturally, Callie tapped into that fear and enjoyed the power it brought, whether real or imagined.
“Callie, I wanted to see if we could set up a meeting, with me, you, and the Senator to introduce you to her and have you get to know her a little. She’s a firecracker and I think you’d like her a lot.”
Callie knew all about Stillman and wasn’t going to bend over backwards to search her out though she was intrigued by what Bledsoe’s new boss could potentially do for her. She viewed Stillman as a lightweight who came to Congress by bludgeoning her opponent with money. It comes in handy when you’re the sole heir of the fortune from one of the wealthiest oil families in the state of Oklahoma. She thought about the possibilities and although Callie was careful which new members of Congress she dealt with, Bledsoe gave her an opening to explore and she could not let it pass without further inspection.
“Did the Senator actually mention that she wanted to meet with me or is this idea coming from you alone?” Callie asked, knowing Jenny would answer the way she thought Callie would want to hear.
“The Senator asked me who the most influential people in Washington were, and naturally, I mentioned your name. I told her that we had a very good relationship due to all our past experiences working together and stuff.”
It came as quite the surprise to Callie to learn that they had “a very good relationship,” primarily since they couldn’t stand the sight of each other. She continued to play along even though she knew Jenny was full of crap. “I’ll tell you what. Send me an email with three potential appointment times that work for Senator Stillman and I’ll check them against my calendar and see if we can make it work. How’s that sound?”
Jenny couldn’t stomach the thought of being dictated to by Callie Wheeler and her response reflected that. “Callie, the Senator is very busy, as you know, so it might be hard to find one date not to mention three. Maybe you could send me three dates that work for you and...”
Callie had entertained her long enough. “Jenny, either send me the dates or pass on it, but don’t start playing games with me. I don’t have the time see whose tits are bigger, okay?”
“I was just saying...”
“I know you were just saying, but I don’t care,” Callie said. The irritation in her voice signaled the end of the discussion. “If you want to meet with me that’s what you’ll have to do, if not, I’m not losing any sleep over it.”
Bledsoe was visibly uncomfortable with Callie and having to beg someone she despised so intensely. “I’ll see if we can find some time.”
“You do that. I have to run, but it was nice catching up with you,” Callie said, lying without blinking an eye. She saved the good-bye and ignored Bledsoe’s response as she walked down 21st Street before crossing over Pennsylvania Avenue. Callie hesitated as she approached the restaurant, stopping for a brief moment then backtracking a few feet and turning left onto Pennsylvania. A few hundred yards before the Kaiser Permanente building, she reached into her purse and pulled out a small notebook and a pen. She tore out a piece of paper and hurriedly jotted down a note:
Mark,
Been awhile. I think we need to talk when you have a few minutes.
My love to Karen,
Callie
She folded the piece of paper and slipped the notebook back into her purse. She stepped inside the Kaiser offices and approached the reception desk.
“Could you please give this note to Doctor Goldstein?” Callie asked, extending it to the nurse behind the counter.
“Doctor Goldstein won’t be in until later this afternoon,” the nurse said in a very pleasant tone as she took the note from Callie’s hand. “Would you like me to put this in an envelope Miss…?”
“Wheeler, Callie Wheeler, and an envelope is not necessary, ma’am.”
The nurse smiled at Callie. “I will leave it in his mailbox then, if that’s okay with you.”
“That would be great,” Callie said with a smile. “Thank you and have a wonderful rest of your day.” Callie exited the building and hurried around the corner to meet Kacey.
As soon as Callie stepped into the restaurant, she spotted Kacey in a corner to the left of the bar. Kacey waved to her the moment they caught each other’s eyes. Callie glided over to the table and the two women hugged as if they hadn’t seen each other in years before taking their seats.
“You look amazing,” Callie said. “Seems this promotion fits you well.”
“I’m lovin’ it.”
Callie first met Kacey at Kirby Park, just off of Main Street in Kingston, when they were both toddlers. Once their mothers had seen how well they played together, they arranged their schedules to make sure they were at the park at the same time each day. As the two girls grew older, they became inseparable, spending virtually
