“God, look at this weather. It’s days like this that remind me Washington used to be a malarial swamp,” Aidan complained. Senator Levy was distracted, staring out at the wind-rippled surface of the Capitol Building’s reflecting pool. His stomach pains had not receded since the hearing adjourned, and he wondered if he should move his doctor’s visit up to next week. Better yet, he thought, maybe I should just quit this job altogether. Although he was aware that his retirement would devastate his ambitious chief advisor, the senator knew that nothing would please his wife more. Lately Elizabeth had been dropping hints about moving to the estate they had recently purchased in the rolling hills of Virginia, the state that had elected him to his lofty position, and her wishes seemed to be taking the form of demands with each passing day.

Still, Levy could not begrudge her this desire, as she had faithfully stood by him through a turbulent political career spanning nearly three decades. The house just outside of Charlottesville was in need of extensive remodeling, and a warm glow spread throughout his body at the thought of making a home there with his wife, and how much she would enjoy the process.

“Senator?” He broke from his thoughts and turned to peer at Kevin Aidan. “We need to talk about your meeting with the governor next week. He’s going to ask you about school funding, so I think we ought to—”

“Later, Kevin. Let an old man rest for a moment,” Levy joked as he leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes. The light drum of the rain on the roof of the vehicle dulled his senses as he drifted back into fantasies of retirement. He took no notice when the vehicle splashed through a miniature lake of rainwater as it made the sharp right turn onto Independence Avenue.

From the moment he received the second call, the man in the black Tahoe worked quickly but efficiently. His hands were steady as he peeled away the threadbare blanket covering the object on the seat next to him. Lifting the awkward rectangular weapon onto his lap, he flipped a latch to move the optical sight into place, then swung the firing-pin mechanism down into position.