The Last Protector(Clayton White #1)(28)

She expected as much. “I know,” she said.

“We caught one of the attackers alive,” he said, a brief smile appearing on his lips. “The one you stabbed in the back.”

The man with the silver hair. Veronica shivered at the thought. She could still see him punching Clayton’s face, his fists like pistons. She remembered vividly plunging the knife into the man’s back and the noise it made when the blade hit bone.

“You did well,” her father said, placing a comforting hand on her knee. “You saved Clay’s life. You know that, right?”

Veronica guessed that was true, but by then Clayton had already killed two intruders. “He saved mine, too, Dad,” she replied.

Her dad nodded. “Yeah, I’m aware of what happened in the room, Veronica. All of it.”

She didn’t like the tone her dad had used to say that. She looked straight at him, her head cocked slightly to one side, her eyes narrowing. Her dad pointed at the engagement ring on her finger.

“Is that for real? Did this really happen?”

She was momentarily caught off guard, but decided not to play defense. Clay would probably get some heat because of it, but with everything that had happened and the way he had ultimately saved the day, she didn’t think she would put him in a bind by admitting that much to her father. She clasped her hands together and leaned toward him. “Yes, it did, Dad.”

Her father dipped his chin, looking disappointed. “I was afraid of that,” he said.

“What do you mean?”

“Clayton admitted the same to a Secret Service investigator,” her father said. “He’s been placed on administrative leave pending the results of a full investigation into today’s events.”

Veronica wasn’t sure what it all meant. “Why? That doesn’t sound good.”

“Because it isn’t. Odds are he’ll get fired from the Secret Service. He may end up facing charges too.”

She was taken aback by her father’s words. It didn’t make sense to her. Why would he face charges? Their relationship was forbidden by some regulations within the Secret Service code of conduct, but charges?

“I don’t think I understand,” she said.

“Really? C’mon, Veronica,” her father snapped back. “How long has this been going on?”

She had rarely seen her father so confrontational, at least with her. Clearly she had misjudged the entire situation. “I’m not sure what you want to hear,” she said. She quickly understood this wasn’t an acceptable answer.

“You have to be kidding me,” he said, slapping his hand on his thigh. “I don’t want you to tell me what I want to hear, I want to know the damn truth. Do you realize how much trouble Clay is in?”

She was starting to. “A while,” she admitted. “Just before you ran for office.”

Her father pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes. He sighed heavily and then said, “And you didn’t feel like telling me? Why?”

“Oh, I don’t know, Dad, maybe because I’m a thirty-six-year-old woman? I don’t need to run things past you. You get that, right? You’re not my commanding officer, and I’m certainly not one of your soldiers.”

She watched as her father’s mouth clamped shut, his face turning beet red. But his eyes remained soft. “You were almost killed, Vonnie,” he whispered a moment later. “I almost lost my little girl. Didn’t I tell you to drop this Drain mobile app? That nothing good would come out of it?”

“Seriously? What in hell does Drain have anything to do with this?” Veronica blew out a breath in frustration. “Why are you constantly fighting me on this? Drain had nothing to do with what happened tonight. How could it?”

“You really can’t see it, Veronica? Think about it for one minute,” her father said, traces of anger and disbelief apparent on his face. “Traveling around the world to remote archaeological sites.”

“And?”

“For Chrissake! Don’t you realize how vulnerable this makes you? You barely escaped with your life tonight, and you were in the middle of San Francisco, surrounded by security.”

Veronica looked away, thinking of the Secret Service agents who’d been killed. By wanting to push ahead full speed with Drain, was she being selfish? Maybe her father had a point after all.

Hammond continued. “I know excavating sites is exciting, and important work too,” he added. “But put yourself in my shoes, Vonnie. In a few weeks I’ll be vice president of the most powerful country in the world, and having you trek around the globe constantly is an opening for our enemies.”

She turned her eyes back to him. “So you want me to buckle down, stay home, and forget about my dreams? Am I getting this right?”

A soft smile appeared on her dad’s lips. “Maybe just for a couple of years.”

She shot daggers at him, and his smile froze on his face.

“Maybe just for a couple of years?” she repeated with pure disdain. “Wow. How stupid do you think I am?”

Veronica saw her father’s spine straighten and his shoulders stiffen. She had hit a nerve. She pushed on.

“You’re gonna be vice president for four years, Alexander,” she said, knowing how he hated when she called him by his name. “Maybe eight if you win reelection. And I know the presidency is next on your list. Mom told me.”