Read Sex Change: A Nina Bannister Mystery (The Nina Bannister Mysteries Book 6) for Free Online Page B

for so long a time, that you and Mr. Lincoln would have been good friends.
    I don’t think that any more.
    What I think now, is that you and Mr. Lincoln are close friends.
    And I believe that with all my heart.
    Good bye for now,
    My beloved Frank.”

CHAPTER FOUR:   OOPS!

    Nina’s existence in Washington went from exciting (first week), to less exciting (second week) to boring (third week), to frustrating (fourth week).
    She had begun her career as congresswoman priding herself on being the perfect little legislator.
    She missed no votes, but always sprang to her feet and raced into the House Chamber every time the bell rang in her office. She missed no fundraisers, whether they be given by the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the Poultry Producers of America, or the Daughters of the American Revolution. She allowed no letter that arrived in her office to go unread, and she made sure that all letters were promptly replied to, a task made even more onerous by the fact that all the replies said pretty much the same thing, no matter what the issue was that happened to be talked about.
    “We understand your concern arising from the issue of (‘Paste issue in here’ ). We in this office, and in the Democratic Party, share your worry about the matter, and are doing everything possible to find a fast and equitable solution. It is, of course, a complex situation, and finding an answer that will not only stop the pain that constituents such as yourself are feeling now, but in the future as well, is the full-time job of all of us here on Capitol Hill who have the privilege of representing you. Rest assured, we take our responsibilities very seriously. You, the other citizens of (‘Paste town or city in here’ ), and indeed the entire state of Mississippi, can rest assured that your voices are being heard, your concerns acted upon, and your ideas put into motion.
    Once again, it is a pleasure to be entitled to act as your representative,

    The Honorable Nina Bannister.”
    She estimated that, by May first, she had signed five thousand such letters.
    That would have been bad enough.
    Worse, though, was her gradual realization that she was not going to bring about any major changes, or any changes at all.
    Nor was anybody else in Washington.
    The government, of which she was now a part, was at a standstill.
    Republicans hated Democrats, who hated them right back.
    There was no compromise on anything.
    And as Nina watched the train wreck that was the current congressional session…
    …as she watched the inability of anyone to bridge the gap between various philosophies concerning gun control…
    …health care reform…
    …abortion rights issues…
    …foreign policy issues…
    …environmental and energy issues (She was failing Gulf Coast Petroleum, for whose causes she could do absolutely nothing)…
    …and above all (she thought often of Ms. Ramirez) immigration reform…
    …a strange and disturbing theory began to develop in her mind.
    She tried to chase it out, but it remained there.
    Where it grew.
    Watching the people around her, and how they behaved toward each other and their adversaries, she began to feel that the major polarity dividing the nation had nothing to do with conservative vs. liberal thought.
    It had much more to do with…
    …could she say it?
    Could she ever put into words exactly why she felt the nation was paralyzed politically?
    No. To do so would be disastrous for her, and for her party.
    She would be laughed out of Washington.
    And so she should never say what she was truly feeling.
    Except, one day, she did.
    It happened as follows:
    Her slip occurred in a second interview with the young woman from The Vicksburg Star who had recorded her interview with Olivia Ramirez.
    This reporter had called a week after her arrival in Washington, anxious to do a backup story.
    And Nina had agreed.
    Why not?
    And so on Thursday, May third, she found herself in the coffee room of her cramped office (There were in