Dutch and Gina: The Power of Love (27 page)

“I don’t think you fully understand why I’ve got to help Marcus,” she finally said as the agony of that reality returned with even more vigor.

“I understand perfectly,” Dutch replied as he continued to wipe her.
 
He had hoped she would let it go, but he also knew Gina was no quitter.
 
“We have this same argument every few months.
 
The same argument.
 
It’s always some bright idea somebody has to free Marcus Rance.
 
And they always come running to you with their brilliant schemes.
 
And then you’re off on that wild goose chase again.
 
All in the name of helping your brother.
 
I understand.
 
You want to help your brother.”

“I have to help him, Dutch.
 
I’m the only one who can.”

 
“Then you have got to let justice take its course,” he said, now wiping his penis.
 
“If Feingold wants to pardon him, then fine.
 
Let him look at the evidence and make that pardon.
 
But you won’t have anything to do with that.”

He said this so firmly that Gina became upset again.
 
She pushed him away from her and sat back on her feet.
 

“I’m the only one who can help him, Dutch,” she said again, tears welling in her eyes.

But Dutch would not be deterred, either.
 
He, in fact, stiffened his resolve.
 
“You’re not going to have any meetings with that governor or anybody else regarding that brother of yours.”

“So you’re saying I can’t even go to the Rand Foundation dinner?”

“That’s not what I’m saying and you know it.
 
Of course you can go to the dinner.
 
That foundation does excellent charity work, especially in Africa.
 
It’s a very worthy cause and I have absolutely no problem with you speaking at their convention or dinner or whatever it is.
 
But I absolutely have a problem with you injecting yourself into some political scheme of Robert Rand’s.
 
And I plan to personally discuss that concern with him myself.”

 
“Dutch, I have to help Marcus, don’t you see that?
 
I’m all he has.
 
I’m the only person who can help him.”

“Then tough!” Dutch said angrily this time.
 
“He won’t be helped then.
 
Because I’ll be damned if I’m going to let you participate in what is nothing short of bribery, Gina!”

“It’s not bribery!”

“It is bribery!” Dutch proclaimed so loudly that Crader and LaLa, who were still in the midst of their passion, stopped suddenly.
 

“They’re fighting again, Cray,” she whispered.

“Just a little more, La,” Crader was saying as he continued to fuck her.
 
His swollen penis was too near its release for him to even entertain the thought of stopping.
 
“Just a little more.”

And LaLa was too enthralled with that penis to tell him to stop.
 
She was nearing the throes of her climax too.

Dutch, however, was near the throes of throttling Gina.
 
“Don’t you dare tell me it’s not bribery because that’s exactly what it will end up being.
 
You make your spiel, which I’m certain will just be a formality, that governor will pardon your brother, and Robert will pay him off for all of his good, charitable work.
 
It’s the bribing of an elected official to justify some end you want to make possible and don’t you dare call it anything else!”

“Then fine,” Gina yelled.
 
“Call it bribery, call it whatever you like.
 
But it’s my brother, not yours, and I’m going to do whatever I can to help him.”

“You aren’t doing a gotdamn thing, Gina, now I mean it.
 
I will not allow you to be a party to anything that will tarnish your good name, I will not allow it!”
 

 
“Don’t you mean you won’t allow me to tarnish
your
good name?” she asked as she turned to leave.
 
Dutch grabbed her arm, stunned that she would say such a thing to him.
 

But her anger was complete.
 
“Let me go,” she said firmly.
 
This time she meant it.
 
But it wasn’t her voice, but that sadness he saw beneath her rage, that caused him to weaken his hold.

He let her go.

Gina then flew open the door and left.
 
Dutch tucked his penis inside and zipped up his pants, his own rage cloaked in sadness, too.
 

He looked down and saw her panties at his feet.

Crader was just beginning to release inside of LaLa when they heard the door in the next room fly open.
 

“We have to stop,” LaLa insisted as she, too, was in the midst of her climax.
 

“Almost,” Crader was whispering as he gave it one final push that pushed them both over the edge.
 
LaLa felt the sense of tightness that caused the muscles of her vagina to constrict, and Crader just poured into her.
 

But as soon as it was over, as soon as they were in the period of deflation, LaLa pulled away from him, pulled up her pants, buttoned them, and hurried to see if Gina was all right.

Crader zipped up too, and hurried behind her.

Dutch heard their approach in the hall, and calmly reached down and placed Gina’s panties inside of his suit pocket.
 

Crader moved in front as he and LaLa glanced into the small room through the opened door.
 

“Everything okay?” he asked his best friend and boss.

“Yes,” Dutch replied, the wind completely out of his sails.
 
“Everything’s fine.”

“Where’s Gina?” LaLa asked.

Just the mention of that name caused a look of defeat to cross over his face.
 
It was barely noticeable, but both Crader and LaLa noticed it.
 
“She’s . . . Try the Nursery,” he suggested.

His defeated tone surprised LaLa, but she immediately hurried to find Gina.

Crader, however, continued staring at Dutch.
 
He saw the small scratch on the side of his face.
 
“What happened?” he finally asked him.

“What happened?” Dutch responded.
 
And then he smiled a smile that wasn’t intended to be joyous.
 
“I married a very independent woman that’s what happened.”

“What?
 
You prefer to be married to a puppet?
 
To a dependent woman?”

Dutch didn’t respond.
 
Because it wasn’t that simple.
 
Gina’s fierce independence was one of the things he loved most about her.
 
But it was also one of the things that infuriated him most about her.
 

He took his fist and slammed it against the wall.

Gina was just coming out of the bathroom inside the Nursery when LaLa arrived.
 
Little Walt was still fast asleep, so Gina moved over to the daybed and sat on it.
 
LaLa walked over too, and sat beside her.
 
It was obvious that she had been crying.

“What did he say?” LaLa asked, although she already had a pretty good idea.

“What he said before.
 
That he’s not going to let me do it.”

“He won’t let you even go to Montreal?”

“I can do that.
 
But I can’t make my case to Governor Feingold.
 
He says I’d better not even meet with the man.
 
So if I do, I’ll be defying him.”

“But you explained to him about your brother’s situation, and how the governor may pardon him if you can convince him that he’s innocent of those charges?”

“Of course I explained it to him, you heard me yourself.
 
But he didn’t want to hear it.
 
Dutch can be so stubborn when it’s about me.
 
He thinks everybody’s taking advantage of me or trying to use me to their own end.”

“Well, he’s got a point, G.
 
Robert Rand isn’t exactly agreeing to help make that pardon happen because of any great need to do some good deed on his part.”

“I know that.
 
There’s something in it for him.
 
I know there’s something in it for the governor.
 
But there’s something in it for me too.
 
My brother will be free.
 
We can finally get to know each other for the first time in our lives.
 
Little Walt’s uncle is in prison for a crime I just don’t believe he committed.
 
How could Dutch be satisfied with that?”

“Because he’s a true believer in the criminal justice system.”

“Like hell he is,” Gina said in a pronouncement that surprised LaLa.
 

“Why would you say that?”

“Because it’s true.
 
He knows my brother was railroaded by those overzealous Texas prosecutors.
 
And I think he would be pleased if the governor were to pardon him.
 
But because I need to get involved, his precious wife, it’s a resounding no.
 
Even after we. . . even after he made love to me, okay, it was still a resounding no.”
 

She, in fact, could still feel the evidence of that love making deep within, and even in her anger she wanted to feel Dutch’s penis inside of her again.
 
She shook her head.
 
She was so dick-whipped by that man it wasn’t even funny.

LaLa exhaled.
 
“I don’t know,” she said.
 
“I always thought Dutch would get upset, yes, but that he would see that there’s really no other choice.”

“So did I.
 
And maybe he’ll still come around.
 
But I’m not banking on it.”

LaLa Looked at her.
 
“So what’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means I will be going to Montreal and I will meet with Governor Feingold and do everything in my power, including begging that man, to set my brother free.”

“And if Dutch doesn’t like it?” LaLa asked.

Gina wanted to throw that same word at him that he had thrown at her and say “tough,” exactly the way he had said it to her.
 
But she couldn’t say it.
 

“Then that would kind of break my heart,” she said instead.

TWELVE

The presidential motorcade sat idling in the White House driveway as Dutch stood at the opened door of his limousine and lifted Little Walt up into his arms. That small scratch on the side of his face, made inadvertently by Gina during their altercation, caused his perceptive son to run his finger along its outer edge.
 
Jade and Christian were also standing beside Dutch, with Jade’s arms around his waist and her head on his shoulders.
 
Crader and LaLa stood farther away, in their own private conversation.
 
And although Gina was standing out there, too, her arms folded against the breeziness of the day, it was obvious that there was nothing but tension between the First Couple.