Justice Lost (Darren Street #3)(28)

I sat up in the seat and turned toward her. I raised my voice a little, made my tone edgier.

“Who the hell are you?” I said. “Really. Who is your father, and what is his connection to Elizabeth Tipton? Give me some facts I can check.”

“You don’t have to curse at me, Mr. Street,” Claire said. “Nor do you have to take that tone with me. I told you. My name is Claire Tate. I’m a strong and intelligent woman who was fortunate enough to be born the granddaughter of Senator Roger Tate.”

“The Senator Roger Tate? As in United States Senate?”

“That would be him.”

I shook my head in wonder. Roger Tate was the senior US senator from Tennessee. He was the chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, one of the most powerful committees in the Senate.

“How does Granny know Roger Tate?”

“My grandfather grew up in the hills of Sevier County, not far from where Elizabeth Tipton grew up. They attended the same church. His family was poor, but he was ambitious, and he wound up getting out and doing some incredible things. He told me he was once very much in love with Ms. Tipton before she became Ms. Tipton, but that she didn’t want to leave her beloved mountains. She wound up marrying another man and staying in the mountains while my grandfather went in another direction. But he remains fond of Ms. Tipton and is more than willing to help her any way he can, anytime he can. He’s also willing to turn a blind eye to some of the things she’s done to provide for herself and her family. She reached out to him on your behalf, and here I am, my grandfather’s emissary and your brand-new campaign manager. I earned a bachelor’s in political science from the University of Tennessee, a master’s from the University of Virginia, and a law degree from Yale, and I’m a veteran of many political wars. If you want to become the next district attorney general of Knox County, you will do what I tell you when I tell you. Are we on the same page, Mr. Street?”

“Call me Darren,” I said. “I hate being called Mr. Street.”

“Maybe later,” she said. “Right now I’d like to keep things on a professional level. You’re Mr. Street and I’m Miss Tate.”

“Okay,” I said. I’d calmed down and decided to mess with her head a little, just for some amusement.

“Are you single?” I said.

“Why would you ask that? Didn’t I just say I want to keep this professional?”

“Just curious,” I said. “No offense intended.”

She glanced over at me and sighed. “Single. Never been married.”

“Lipstick lesbian?”

“Why is it that anyone over twenty-five who isn’t married must be a lesbian?”

“I’m guessing you’re mid to late thirties, and you’re extremely attractive. It was just a question. You don’t have to answer.”

“Why would you even care?”

“I don’t. I’m just testing your limits. You’ll find that I enjoy doing that on occasion.”

“I’m not a lesbian. I just don’t like men much. I find them boorish and boring, and you just proved my point.”

“Thanks,” I said.

“You’re welcome. Now, if you’re finished with your inquiries into my sexual preferences, maybe we can get on with some productive discussion.”

“By all means, productively discuss,” I said.

“You need to hold a press conference in the near future.”

“Okay,” I said. “How do I go about getting the press to come?”

“Leave that to me. You will undoubtedly face some questions about certain crimes some people believe you have committed. I’ll coach you how to handle those questions.”

“You don’t have to coach me,” I said. “I may be boorish and boring, but I’m not stupid. I haven’t committed any crimes. I’ll just deny it.”

“Some methods of denial are more effective than others, Mr. Street,” she said.

“Seems pretty simple to me. I didn’t do it. I’ve never committed a crime in my life, and anyone who says I have is a liar.”

“‘Misinformed’ or ‘mistaken’ are better. ‘Liar’ is too combative.”

“Fine.”

“Are you always this prickly?” she said. “You’ll need to be nice to people if you want them to vote for you.”

“I can be nice when I want to,” I said. I was enjoying the back-and-forth. She was bright and quick, and she smelled so damned good. But I didn’t know her from Adam. I’d been burned in the past, so I wasn’t going to trust her blindly.

“Good. Try to want to right now.”

“I get upset when people accuse me of committing crimes I haven’t committed. What made you mention it, anyway?”

“I believe Ms. Tipton may have said something to my grandfather about you having some skeletons in your closet.”

“Granny would never say anything like that about me,” I said.

“My grandfather doesn’t like surprises,” she said. “I’m sure Ms. Tipton knows that. He would want to know everything he could about you before he agreed to something as unusual as what we’re about to do. He’s going to personally endorse you, you know. That in itself will go a long way toward beating Morris. He’s also going to request that some money be discreetly transferred from his treasury to yours.”