Free Capitol Murder by Phillip Margolin

recording appeared on the Internet? How many votes do you think you would get after it was shown?”
    Carson’s hands balled into fists and his face flushed with anger. He took a step toward Koshani, then stopped abruptly. He had been so focused on the television that he had not seen her take the Beretta out of the drawer that held the DVD.
    “That’s a good boy,” Koshani said in a tone that mocked the words that had been said on the screen. She waved the barrel toward the bed.
    “Lie down,” she ordered. Carson knew what would come next. He’d done it often enough during their sex play.
    Koshani used sets of velvet-lined handcuffs to fasten the senator’s hands and feet to the four corners of the bed. Then she sat on the bed and caressed Carson’s crotch. His penis was limp.
    “Has the fun gone out of sex for you?” she asked with false concern. Carson turned his head so he wouldn’t have to look at her. She slapped him.
    “Look at me when I speak to you,” she ordered.
    When Carson brought his eyes to hers, there was real fear in them. This was not a game anymore. Koshani jammed the gun barrel under the senator’s chin.
    “What is the FBI going to do about InCo?”
    “I can’t tell you. I’d be committing treason,” he whined.
    “I don’t think you fully appreciate your situation, Senator. You are going to answer my questions with complete honesty or the DVD will be released and you will be disgraced. Then, when your humiliation is complete, your wife will be killed in an extremely violent manner, and your children will be kidnapped and sold as sex slaves.”
    Carson stared openmouthed. Then he gagged. When he was through, Koshani got a tissue and dabbed at his mouth.
    “You’ve ruined my silk sheets, but the sacrifice was worth it if you’re clear about what will happen if you disobey me. And don’t think you can lie to me, then go to the FBI. I’m a small cog in a big machine. There are people who enjoy violence. They will do what needs to be done to punish you if you go to the authorities. They have copies of the DVD, and they know where your children go to school. Do you understand?”
    Carson nodded. Koshani slapped him again.
    “Answer me out loud.”
    “Yes, I understand,” Carson said, utterly defeated.
    “Good. Now tell me what the FBI has planned for InCo.”
    “They’re going to serve a subpoena for business records.”
    “When?”
    “Soon. I don’t know the exact day.”
    “What are they looking for?”
    “I don’t know specifics. They’ve heard rumors about a major attack in the United States.”
    “Where is this attack supposed to take place and when is it supposed to happen?”
    “They don’t know.”
    Koshani thought for a moment.
    “I’m going to send you back to Washington, Jack. You will tell me where the authorities suspect the attack will take place and when they think it will occur. You will also inform me of any actions that are planned against me or anyone else.”
    “The FBI may not know where the attack will take place. I don’t know if I can get the information.”
    Koshani leaned forward and stared directly into Carson’s eyes. “Pray that you can.”

Chapter Eleven
    L awrence Cooper’s office was in a strip mall in Hyattsville, Maryland, between a liquor store and a nail salon. Cooper rarely had visitors he needed to impress, so the office reception area was furnished with cheap furniture that looked as though it could have been made in a high school shop class. Most of the furniture and furnishings in Cooper’s private office weren’t much better, but his wife had hung hunting prints on the wall behind his desk in hopes of giving the office a little class.
    Cooper had an aversion to exercise and the sun. You would expect him to be fat, but he had allergies to so many foods that he ate like a bird and looked anorexic. His chest was sunken, his shoulders stooped, and his skin had an unhealthy pallor. Initial impressions pegged him as weak, but