How would you like to continue to be the First Lady for life?’ ‘For life?’ She had no comprehension of what he was leading up to. ‘Yes, for as long as Bradford remains in the White House, the rest of his term, his next four-year term, and after that remain the former First Lady, honoured wherever you go, a celebrity for as long as you live. Wouldn’t you like that?’ Vera had not really thought about such a possibility, or rather about the pleasure her First Lady role gave her. Not thought about it? Simply not true. She had thought about it. She had thought about it frequently. From time to time, these past weeks, she had entertained fantasies about going on with her role. Sometimes, she would forget altogether that she was a spy and a Soviet citizen. She would see only golden America wrapped around her, America with its riches, luxuries, easy living. And herself, as America’s First Lady, and her possessions of power, respect, fame, the most famous female on earth.
