Detective Danny Cavanaugh 01 - The Brink

Texas.
    Danny read on. The FBI was offering a hundred thousand dollar reward for information leading to his capture. Of all the accusations on the page, the next words—also in bold blue typeface—were the hardest to swallow.

    CONSIDERED ARMED AND EXTREMELY DANGEROUS

    Danny looked up at the president. “I guess you just made a hundred grand, Mr. President.”
    The president smirked. “Except that’s not why you’re here.” He grabbed the FBI flyer, folded it up, and stuck it back in his jacket pocket.
    “Then why did you show it to us?” Sydney quipped.
    Simon Shilling finally spoke. “We wanted to remind you that you have no other choice than to help us.”
    Sydney replied to the president. “That’s why we are here, Mr. President. There are people who want to cause the United States irreparable harm.”
    Danny gave Sydney a look. Don’t ever show your cards until it’s absolutely necessary. Shilling just asked for our help, but help with what?
    “Yes, about that.” The president reached into the folder that he had set beside his chair. He pulled out a familiar stack of documents and laid them on the coffee table. “I read your note and had White House counsel review the lawsuit. She determined it’s valid. We compared Booker’s signature with the one we have on file. It’s authentic.”
    Sydney reached for the lawsuit’s summary page that was on top of the stack. She flipped it over and began reading Danny’s note. Danny saw every word of the note in his mind as he waited for her reaction.

    Mr. President,
    My name is Danny Cavanaugh. I am a sergeant with the Texas Rangers. The woman that I am holding hostage is Sydney Dumas. She has told me that she is a representative of the International Court of Justice and that members of her organization are trying to kill her because of her involvement with a case summarized on the back of this message. I have had no way of knowing if this is true, I’ve only gone on blind faith. I hope that you do the same and agree to meet with us ASAP to discuss what we know. I am not exaggerating when I say that the fate of the United States may well rest upon what we have to tell you.
    Sydney glared at Danny after she was finished reading. “That’s why you didn’t let me see your message! You still don’t believe me!”
    “I don’t think that you were lying to me, Sydney. I needed to show President Butcher that, just like me, he needs to have faith.”
    The president regained their attention by clearing his throat. “Ms. Dumas, can you tell me what led you to believe that members of the ICJ are trying to kill you?”
    Sydney sat up straight and remained rigid as she recapped the story about the Bilderbergers and how the lawsuit was the sign that Fed chairman Dexter Walsh was engineering America’s demise.
    When she was finished, the president turned to his chief of staff. Sydney kept her eyes off Danny.
    “Any thoughts, Simon?” he calmly asked.
    Simon Shilling’s poker face was not nearly as good as the president’s. He sat motionless on the couch while an amazed look solidified in his eyes.
    “Simon?” the president urged again.
    “Yes sir. I …” Nervous laughter escaped his mouth. “I mean, I’ve never heard of such a thing.”
    Sydney erupted again. “You do not believe me?”
    “Easy, Ms. Dumas. I didn’t say I didn’t believe you. It’s just a lot to take in all at once. I mean Bilderbergers wanting to take over the world, a secret lawsuit, Dr. Walsh being in on the whole thing with his—what did you call it again?”
    “The Markov Monte Carlo model,” Sydney declared. “It is a real economic theorem, one he has used before.”
    The president stayed quiet for a long time and then said something that made the collective attention of the room fall squarely on his shoulders. “Simon, what Ms. Dumas is telling us, it fits in with our problem.”
    “Sir?” Simon blurted. By the way he said it, Danny could tell that half of Simon’s response was a question and the other half was a plea for the president not to go any further .
    Danny’s instincts vaulted to red alert. He fell right into interrogation mode. “Mr. Shilling said something about helping you, Mr. President. What’s he talking about, sir?”
    President Butcher didn’t flinch. He continued staring at his chief of staff. Simon finally nodded at him, and the president swung his eyes over to Danny and Sydney.
    “What I am about to tell you does not leave this office.