The goddamned fucking nerve of that guy accusing me of all people of doing something illegal.

ME!

I've been here trying to save information for the FBI because I'm damned near 100% sure that they are building a case against Evelyn.

Precious Evelyn. Who can do no wrong.

I couldn't take it any more.

"But you wouldn't know what saving your ass is like, would you? You know what I'm doing? I'll tell you. Your sweet old lady campaign manager is a fucking criminal. She's involved in money laundering."

He squinted his eyes at me.

"Yeah, I saw the suspicious activity, and I traced some of it back to the FBI."

"The FBI? Evelyn's involved with the FBI?"

"No! Evelyn's being watched by the FBI. My email server kept having problems because someone was trying to hack in - I figured it out, it's the FBI, or at least that's the best guess I have based in the IP addresses and some sniffing around on IRC. They're trying to get her emails. And the FBI doesn't do that without a warrant. Sooner or later - probably sooner - they are going to hit me with a subpoena for all these emails."

He looked confused, then angry, then confused again.

"You know, Victoria mentioned something about money laundering. Or, 'washing money,' as she called it because she's a few watts shy in the old bulb."

I smiled. It was coming together.

"You don't think - is Victoria somehow involved in this?"

"Her dad is a filthy, slimy mob boss in Vegas who has his claws in deep with every politician he can buy. But he was never able to buy me. My motto when it comes to that shit is 'Daddy don't play.' My entire operation is on the up-and-up or I shut it down. Period."

"Do you think he would, or could, get to you through Evelyn? I mean, what's her game here? Why is she all into this? Isn't it just something she does?"

"She's wanted to be in politics for a long time. Back in the 80s, she had a failed bid for office. She was pretty hard on herself for losing because she thought she was the perfect candidate. According to her, she did some soul searching and she realized that she was single, she didn't have the right connections, she didn't have the right money, she wasn't smooth enough. Sure, she had the education, the background, and she's a brilliant political strategist, but it wasn't enough."

"But then she met you."

"Yeah, she met me, except I had a string of failed relationships. Lucky in life, unlucky in love, that was me. Is me, I guess."

I wanted to hug him. I couldn't, though, because he was pushing me away even as he began to realize it was he that pushed me away long ago.

"She had been working in political consulting as a strategist for several firms and she came highly recommended to me. I guess she saw that we would make a perfect pair, but I was missing the beautiful spouse. She started going on and on about the "Perfect Wife" and she even capitalized it in memos she sent to me. I spent a while 'vetting' the ladies she sent me, but none were good enough. As we started to campaign, she started to get really anxious and then announced to me that she figured it out, she struck a 'deal' and found her elusive "Perfect Wife" and I would meet her soon."

"You only just met her?"

"I met her a few seconds before you did, yeah."

I actually felt bad for the guy. For all his ambition in life, for all his success, he needed a washed up political drop-out to play matchmaker for him.

"What do you think she did? Did she make a deal with this mob boss?"

"That's what I don't know. Victoria Lobos is no prize, but I'm sure she's a drain on her father, so he was happy to be rid of her, and Evelyn was happy to have her connections and the trophy wife for her family values campaign."

"If the FBI is looking into it, this can't be good. Do you think Evelyn will come clean with you?"

"Yes. She's my trusted confidante. We've been together for years. It takes a long time to plan a run for political office, a lot of preparation. Do you think she won't?"

"I don't know what to think, honestly. I'm pretty confused here. The man I loved for so long comes waltzing back into my life after 10 years and we seem to be getting along great - and having the absolute, hands-down best sex of my life - and suddenly it seems he's being watched by the FBI. And then I find out he's about to get engaged, which would have been nice to know BEFORE he fucked my brains out."

Daryl raised his brows, puffed out his cheeks and slowly let his breath out.

"I don't know what to say. You love me?"

I knew I was going to cry no matter how much I didn't want to. "Damn it, Daryl, I loved you when you were the scrawny kid! I didn't want you to leave! I thought you knew that!" I hit his arm as the tears began to stream down my face. He tried to hug me but I pushed him away. "No! You're just going to leave me again! Just go away, just leave now before you tear my heart out again. Just go."

"I'm not going to marry Victoria. I already told Evelyn-"

"You know what's going to happen? She's going to trick you into it. Or she's going to tell you that you can't win an election with a fat little wife next to you. That's all I am to her, this fat little lady from small town nowhere, a pitstop on your career path."

"Hey, that's not fair-"

"It's true. I suspected from the beginning. I can't leave here, anyway. My mom needs me. I have my life to put back together. I was dumped this morning, I wrecked my car, I almost got fired because of your vindictive assistant-"

"Campaign manager."

"Whatever. I almost got fired, and now old wounds that I spent years trying to heal were viciously torn back open. Did you know about Evelyn's shady dealings or not?"

"I will not be accused of any wrongdoing, Wendy. You know I'm not that way. You know me. Or at least I thought you did. And I thought I knew you. I think I'd better go."

* * *

I didn't have time to sit and cry in the server room, but I wiped away the running mascara and tried to dry my eyes as best I could.

"Oh, he didn't say he loved you, too, dear?" Lisa could see my red eyes.

"How do you know that?"

"Your eyes are red from crying. Your nose is red from sniffling. You look like you want to unleash hellfire on everyone around you, hon." She hugged me and I got a nose full of that awful perfume, but it didn't smell quite so awful this time. It just smelled like Lisa.

"You're going to make me cry again."

"Well, we have a few things to do. Dinner's about to start and there's going to be an announcement."

I got a lump in my throat when she said that.

"What announcement?"

"I don't know, Ms. Malieux didn't tell me and I didn't ask. I need to do a mic check and make sure you do that think that limits the feedback."

"The limiter, yeah, I got it. The acoustics in this place suck ass."

"Wendy!"

I laughed. Lisa was always a good foil.

I stared at her. I wanted to spill the beans about the FBI and the email that I read, but she would be very upset and it was probably outside the limit of her tolerance and understanding.

"What is it?"

"He told me he loved me."

"Why, that's good, isn't it?" Her tentative smile faded. "How couldn't it be?"

"I accused him of doing some illegal stuff."

"Oh, Wendy. You've really got to stop fucking yourself, dear."

"Lisa!"