No Corner to Hide (The Max Masterson Series Book 2) Read Online Free Page B

big hole in it. If that isn’t espionage, I don’t know what is…” He continued reading over Scarlett’s shoulder while drying his head with an undersized hand towel. The effect was similar to sitting next to a drenched Labrador Retriever, and Max sprayed her proper clothing with vigor.
“Max, stop it! You’re soaking me! If you mess up my hair, I’ll…”
He was doing it on purpose, and she knew it.
“Rich buffoons are better qualified to be president,” she added.
“Yeah, probably,” he replied.
“How? Why?”
“Look. My Dad reared me to be president. I can think of about a thousand better jobs. He programmed me for a higher purpose. Higher than president.” Max paused for the effect he intended. Scarlett’s face told him what he needed to know. To her, there was no higher calling. Before she could properly express disagreement and launch into a debate on the subject, Max quickly changed the subject. He would never reveal to Scarlett his greater goals in life, and Scarlett would never understand. He may as well have been having a conversation with a mannequin.
Max continued, but his voice was more subdued. “I remember when he was almost gone. He was in pain for a long time. I think that after awhile, it makes a person hallucinate, and then they become profound.” Scarlett realized that it was time to listen. “My dad died of a broken heart after my mom…when Adrianna… died.” He took a deep breath. “She was my teacher. She was his girlfriend…they killed her.” It hurt to look at his eyes, projecting the pain of his memories. For a brief moment, she felt sorry for him, but only for a moment. They had a country to run.
“Are you going to sit there and have a pity party, or are you going to do something?” Scarlett was determined to get Max on task. Tough love.
“What?”
“You need to get out there and show that you are in charge. You don’t get a chance to think about the past. You need to build a future.” She was hard on him, but right. He needed to be president. “Aren’t you always yammering about how the image is more important than the candidate? You can’t lead if you’re stuck in reverse,” Dwelling on the past, in her mind, was the equivalent of worrying about the future. Both activities were a waste of time. Her determination was unshakeable. Before he could protest, Scarlett took the initiative.
“Until you talked me into being your running-mate, and too soon before the election, I might add, I was your opponent.” She stood, and grabbed the wet towel from his hands. “I already knew about your strange ways, and your strange ideas, and I signed on for this voyage despite my strongest instinct to turn and run. Don’t you disappoint me, Max Masterson.” She deftly snapped the towel at his bare midriff. Decorum kept her from aiming lower.
“Ow, that hurt!” Max retrieved the towel and prepared to retaliate, but Scarlett gave him a stern look that transformed his horseplay into seriousness. He had seen her employ it in several senate hearings he had viewed of her in action, and she was very adept at controlling an audience through nonverbal cues. That’s a talent that might come in handy. A politician who can get people to do something without saying a word. I wonder if she’ll teach me.
“Max, are you listening to me? ”
    u

CHAPTER 5
    T
    he report had riveted Scarlett’s attention. It linked a recent oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico to the previous Deepwater Horizon spill that placed the blame on BP and Transocean, the contractor that supplied the equipment and engineers to do the
    drilling. The report implicated three employees who had reported for duty two weeks before the oil platform explosion, and were listed as missing or dead when the explosion illuminated the night and eventually sank the oil platform. Their bodies were never found. According to the article, they were not found because they were not dead. The three oil workers left the oil platform by