CHAPTER V

The days and weeks settled into some resemblance of order for David and Karen. By the end of the month, David had over two hundred mice with fuzzy feet. Karen laughed at him as she told him it would take very tiny clippers to shear them. She certainly didn't think the sheep industry should be worried yet. It would take a lot more mice than what David had to make one pair of mittens.

David told her to sell her sheep ranch in Australia and put her money into mice because the future was going to be there. But even when she joked with him, he was proud of the fact she noticed what he was doing.

Karen and Henry managed to increase their model production to the rate of one per hour but still couldn't keep up with orders. Bill Chambers told her to get help. She responded by telling Bill help wasn't what was needed. It was equipment limiting the process and she needed time to build and program it. Karen was putting Bill off the only way she knew how, but was it was dubious how long he would buy it. She didn't want to try to duplicate Henry and didn't know if she could, even if she tried.

"Henry, could you handle another table?" It was an idle question. She knew he was quite capable of handling several duplication tables at the same time.

"I could but you can't. Look at you, Karen, it has been almost a month since you and David went on a date. You're putting more and more time in the lab trying to keep up with orders which are pouring in because of your little stunt down at the mall. You are getting farther behind instead of catching up. What you don't need is something that will take more of what you are already short of. Namely time. If you would take my advice and let me handle the programs, you and David could enjoy each other’s company like your species was meant to."

"No, I don't want you running programs without me. At least, not in my lab. I know you’re probably raiding a computer somewhere as we speak, but I don't have to know about it. And I don't need your suggestions as what to do with my love life, either."

She pulled a sheet off the printer. "Is the color compound eighteen the same as the one we had before? I’m getting a different reading on the spectrograph other than normal. Do you think the model on the table has the right skin tone for her build and skin texture? It doesn't look right from here."

She walked over to the computer screen with her printout and brought up an analysis from the analytical spectrometer. Something was wrong. She went over to the window of the working lab and studied the model Henry was finishing.

"Henry, we have a problem."

"No, we don't. This color compound eighteen is from a different company than the one you have been using. The people we were ordering from couldn't keep up with your shipments. I adjusted the polarity of the retinal beam and came close to the skin tone we would normally use on this model. The spectrograph will show a discrepancy but it’s wrong. There isn't any problem."

"I can do this without you, Karen. I have in the past when you were busy."

"It was only after we started a program and I was called to the main office to see Mr. Chambers. Which reminds me. After listening to you, we’re lucky to still have a job."

"Not lucky. I told you he couldn't fire you. I kind of agreed with most of what you told him. Except I thought the part about you had to be ready for sex anytime he felt like it was a little far out."
"I never said any such thing. Where do you get these stories, anyway?" She couldn't believe Henry told her, she was ready for sex with Bill Chambers.

"To be more specific, you said, and I quote per verbatim. We share your work, we bare your children, and we support you in whatever you do. To repay us, you pay us less than a man for the same amount of work. You expect us to do your laundry, cook your meals for free, and be ready for sex anytime you feel like it. You want us to look like movie stars and work like dogs."

"Do I need to continue?"

She stopped everything she was doing and was listening to Henry. "I don't believe I said what you say I did. You’re making this up with bits and pieces of whatever you have stored in your tiny little brain. Besides, you’re taking it out of context and making it sound a lot worse than what it is. Anyway, how do you know what I said?"

"Does old Bill have an intercom in his office?"

"Y e s s s?" What was Henry leading her into?

"It's electronic isn't it? On about eighty-six percent of all phones still on the receiver, I can listen to the conversations in that room. I can get a program from a computer in operation by the signals it is sending out through the air. In your world of electrical and electronic equipment, it’s almost impossible to shield any room or building from the electronic eavesdropping going on. I’m lucky you put my circuits and memory in a steel room with low temperature control. Signals I generate are very weak because of the low requirements for electrical impulses in the low temperature. The steel room shields any signals which might otherwise escape from my circuits. You know, steel walls don't pass electrical signals worth a darn."

"The night of your accident. Of all the phones I wanted to access, yours had to be one of the few which aren't hot on the receiver. I made several errors then. I won't make them again."

Karen looked at her reflection in the glass. "We both made some mistakes we won't make again. Do you listen in to all the conversations in this building?"

"Yes and no, I listen to everything said and delete information which doesn't pertain to anything important. When Jack, in office security, called his wife, and said he thought the cookies she baked for him were great, I didn't save it. I wouldn't be able to confirm or deny it one millisecond after he hangs up. It wouldn't be in memory storage. Not mine anyway. The recorders in security would still have it on tape. The computer in the telephone office registers most all incoming and outgoing calls and I can match up his call home with the tapes from security. This is the only reason I can tell you he called home a couple of hours ago."

"However, when ACME's president Cal Ryan, called up Bill Chambers and asked for a meeting with you, and Bill told him no. Now that I have stored in my memory."

"They’re screening my phone calls? When did this start?" She forgot the program was running without her.

"The day you were splashed all over the papers, it became serious. You did more than just increase orders for your work that day. You started getting calls from people wanting things other than a model. I told you the day you were called in to Bills office, you had people calling in wanting to be your agent. Bill told the front office you weren't to be disturbed with any outside calls. Haven't you noticed Karen, other than David, no one calls you any more? Orders for your models come through electronic mail. You really need to get a life other than this place."

She gave the camera a hostile look. "I thought it was because they were taking all the orders up front and leaving us alone to do our work down here. I didn't know they were stopping my personal calls too. How was I to know? No one ever called wanting to talk to me personally in so long, it never dawned on me they would screen my calls."

"Why didn't you tell me about it before now? Knowing they were doing it and not notifying me is as bad as if you agreed with them, Henry."
"Karen, up until the call Bill intercepted this morning, all of them have been nuisance calls. You don't need any agents and you don't need insurance. What callers would you like to talk to? The guy who wanted to be your money broker? The salesmen wanting to sell you their polymer? We’re using the best one already. You want to talk to the people wanting to manage your career? How about the ones wanting you to donate to one cause or another? I liked the one about unwed mothers needing a vacation in the Bahamas for their complexion because they no longer attract men. It almost moved me to make a donation myself."

"Get serious."

"I’m serious. You think I could make up something like that? I’ll play back the whole conversation for you."

She shook her head. "Never mind. I believe you. What about the call from ACME?"

"Listen, this is Linda, the receptionist."

"Commercial Technologies. How may we help you?"

"This is Cal Ryan. I would like to talk to Karen Long in your duplication department."

There were several clicks and then the unmistakable voice of Bill Chambers. "Cal, you old dog. This is Bill Chambers. Karen Long is busy."

There was anger in Cal's voice. "I don't recall asking to talk to you. I believe I asked to speak with Karen Long."

There was a click of a receiver hanging up and Bill was back again. "Cal, that was Karen on the conference phone. She wasn't interested in talking to you or anyone else at ACME."

"Bill, you lying SOB. Why don't you let Karen answer for herself? In case you don't remember, I have played enough golf with you to know you cheat. Anyone who would cheat at golf would cheat and lie at everything. I don't believe Miss Long was on the phone."

Another voice came on the line. "This is Karl Adder, I’m head of the department where Karen Long works. She was listening but she didn't want to talk to you, Mr. Ryan. She told me she was satisfied working for Commercial Technologies and has no intentions of working for another company."

"Karl Adder, that worm food. I can't believe he and Bill would do this to me." Karen said it softly so as to not interrupt the conversation. She forgot this conversation took place earlier and Henry was repeating it for her.

"Jealousy and greed make a powerful driving force in the lives of humans, Karen. Bill and Karl feel both jealousy and greed toward you. They want the power to control you and your department. They have no intention of letting anyone talk to you or make you a job offer. The idea you would leave them and Comm Tech behind scares Bill silly. Karl isn't bright enough to be scared. He thinks he can waltz in and take over your department without any training in running your equipment. In each of their minds, for whatever reason, you wronged them. Now they want revenge, no matter if the wrong was real or imagined."

He had stopped the program. "Do you wish to hear the rest of it?"

"Yes, please."

Henry thought about the way Karen answered. She was probably the only human in the whole world who would say please to a machine. Her creator should have made more like her. There would be less room for ones like Karl and Bill.

Cal Ryan's voice returned. "I was calling to talk to Karen and see if she was willing to discuss a business offer. I can talk to her at home. Our security people have ways of getting unlisted telephone numbers. At least I won't have to put up with you butting into our conversations."

"Just a minute Mr. Ryan. Would you believe Karen if she told you herself?" It was Karl's voice asking the question.

"If she told me herself. Yes, I think I would believe her."

It was a female speaking. "Mr. Ryan, I thank you for your offer but I’m not interested. I suggest you call Mr. Adder if you have any future interest in our duplicating department. He is the head of our department. Goodby."

Bill spoke again. "Karl, I’m going to get off the line. I have a meeting with the board in a couple of minutes to discuss the expansion of the duplication department. We have plans drawn up to increase our production ten fold over the next month. I’m sure with the profits we’re showing, the board will readily agree to the proposal. Don't be too much longer or you will be late to the meeting. This is your department and it is imperative you be there to detail the expansion plans. No one knows more about this department than you."

"Okay, Mr. Chambers." It was Karl's voice.

"Mr. Ryan, I believe we could supply any models you want to buy from us or any other equipment you might want to purchase to update you duplicating department."

"You would sell me the same type equipment you're presently using in your own department? If I use your equipment, would you guarantee my models to be the same quality you’re turning out?"

The greed of Karl willing to sell something he had no legal right to was hard for Karen to imagine.

"I believe we could sell you equipment and guarantee your product in quality as long as you understand Karen is our designer. She is only an artist. You probably could hire someone as qualified or better than she is to design your models. She really isn't that good. The equipment takes care of her mistakes for her. In all honesty Mr. Ryan, I would like to get rid of her but she had a smart lawyer threaten us with the contract we foolishly signed with her. I’m afraid we’re stuck with her for a couple of more years. The reason she didn't want to talk to you is she knows any new contracts would be tentative upon her performance. She realizes she would be fired after a few months."

It was Cal Ryan's voice again. "This may be my lucky day. I had my suspicions about a woman manufacturing the models you’re producing. I guess we can't believe everything we read in the papers. Let me know what kind of money we’re discussing for the purchase of the duplicating equipment. We’ll probably be able to make a deal."

"The phony ID, she let them photograph in the papers probably made suckers out of everyone. I guess the publicity was good for your company. The only reason I can figure you didn't prosecute her, was because she was doing a pretty good job for your image. I can't blame you there. I guess we have all pulled the same stunt some time or another. I appreciate you letting me know before I offered her a contract. Get back in touch with some specifications, a material list, and prices."

The way Karen was sitting on the edge of her chair clinching her fists wasn't lost on Henry. He could tell she was mad and upset. "Karen, that was the extent of the telephone conversation. Would you like to hear what was said in the office after they hung up?"

She took a deep breath and used both hands to push the hair off her forehead. Another deep breath before she spoke, as she tried to get her anger under control. "No, I don't think I need to hear the rest of it word for word. Who was the woman who was suppose to be me? Was it a computer?"

Henry started to laugh and thought better of it. Karen wasn't in a joking mood. "You have been talking to me so long you forget most talking computers sound stilted and mechanical. There isn't any computer who can synthesize the human voice and make it sound human."

She looked straight into one of the cameras. "You do."

"Yes, because you designed me. No one has been able to do what you have. Not yet, anyway. They’re closing in but it will take them a few more years before they get close. Fuzzy logic allows for real human sounding speech. Quite a difference in the pitch, volume, and tone of a vocal cord making a sound and a speaker trying to replicate that sound. Kind of like trying to make a piano sound like a guitar, would be a good analogy."
"Why didn't Cal Ryan suspect something was wrong when they first told him I wouldn't quit Comm Tech and then later on in the conversation said I didn't have any idea what I was doing? They contradicted themselves almost all the way throughout the whole conversation. Wasn't Cal Ryan listening to what was said?"

"Greed has hold of him, Karen. He could only think of one thing at a time. First he wanted you and then Bill and Karl began dangling your equipment in front of him. From that point on, getting his hands on your equipment was all he could think of. I strongly suspect the old male chauvinistic ego probably had a lot to do with it. You heard him say, he didn't think a woman was capable of doing what you had done. To him, you were the pretty glamour and glitter hype all good public relations puts out. A brainless wonder to show off the equipment and no more. You are the gorgeous model sitting on top of the new car, or the beautiful woman selling lawn equipment, or ...."

She shrugged her shoulders. "Okay, enough already, I get the picture. What about the woman, who was she?"

"The woman's name is Patricia Walker. She was blackmailed into doing what she did. They had this planned a couple months ago, Karen. Bill knew you would be receiving offers from other companies and he set this up along with Karl. The same day he called you to the office, he contacted Karl. The woman is in Karl's department and he told her to cooperate or she would lose her job. She is scared because she and her husband are barely getting by now. If she loses her job they lose their home. Don't judge her too harshly. She did what she thought she had to do, to survive."

"Can they sell my department and you to ACME?" It wasn't a question she wanted to ask but she had to know one way or another.

"You ask a double question. You forget you’re talking to a machine. Yes, they could sell your department and me if they stole us. It isn't theirs to sell. Legally they can't sell what doesn't belong to them. Even if I belonged to Commercial Technologies I’m sure the board would never approve such a transaction."

"How much are they going to sell everything for?"
"Two hundred and forty million was the asking price. They were flexible. If they didn't get the asking price they would dicker down to two hundred million."

Karen pushed back in her chair disgusted and upset. "That was very generous of them. A nice round figure of a hundred million apiece. They had to keep it simple so they could divide it evenly. Karl wouldn't know what was his if it turned into fractions."

"Actually, Bill gets two-thirds and Karl gets one third. I guess one of them can divide."

"How did they plan on doing it?" There was hate in the question.

"They’re kind of fumbling along really. Neither one is a computer genius. I had the word idiot in mind but Karl is doing fairly well. He has attempted almost constantly for the past couple of months to access me. From the first thing in the morning until he goes home at night he is trying. They had the notion I would be vulnerable from a computer terminal inside the plant. It has been most enjoyable for a past time. I keep passing him hints making him think he is getting close. When he gets too discouraged, I feed him some trash information. It has kept him occupied and entertained. Some of his illogical moves have been brilliant in their own way but he was too stupid to recognize it."

"He can never access me but may realize at some time exactly how good you are and what he is dealing with. At that point he will know he can never get in electronically. He and Bill will revert to physical means to obtain the information they want. I’m not set up to defend myself physically. I can keep them from opening your lab door through the security lock but a good cutting torch will make short work of it. If they penetrate the lab I don't know if I could turn a laser on them. I have never had to do it, so therefore it is an unknown. The numbers are one hundred percent I could turn the lasers on them and less than one hundredth of a percent I could hurt them if I did. Not very good odds for our side, Karen."

She looked into the working lab where Henry was still scorching the air with those deadly lasers. "What do you mean, you couldn't hurt them if you turned the lasers on them? Those lasers are powerful enough to poke holes in six inch armor in less than one thousandth of a second. I have seen you cut two inch steel in half when maintenance was working in the lab and got in your way."

"Turn on is an ambiguous term. I should have said, point the lasers at them."

Karen had been dealt an emotional blow she didn't need. "I’ll bring a cot in and sleep here from now on."

"You know what I like most about humans? Always illogical. I could never set up a format to keep pace. How long do you think you could keep going in a situation like that? Even if you were able to wait until Bill and Karl made their move, what makes you think you could defend yourself against two men? You suddenly become a karate expert along with the other change?"

"Everyone knows you and David are making love. Don't you think security will notice you stopped going home at night? You want them to think you’re trying to make time with your computer, too?"

Karen's feelings were showing. "You might have thought you were joking but I am fond of you, Henry. I know you are more than pieces of wire and silicon. I would be willing to give my life to protect you."

"Your statement is illogical. You are about to overload my illogical circuits. Let's talk sense. Or, as you humans like to paraphrase it, good old common horse sense."

Karen shook her head. "You don't have any illogical circuits, you dope. You can't overload what isn't there. Now get serious. You're the one with over a million computations per second. What kind of common sense are you speaking of?"

"The best defense is a good offense. Eliminate Karl and we eliminate the problem. Bill doesn't know one thing about computers except how to turn them on and read the stock quotes. He could never access me and he would never think about breaking into your lab unless he had someone else do it for him. As far as Bill is concerned, I consider him a nuisance but not a threat without Karl."
"You mean we kill Karl Adder?" Karen couldn't believe she had said it nor Henry had suggested it.

"The English language has too many synonyms. Let me explain it another way. Eliminate, as like terminate, or like fire, as to lay off, or let go, as like dispel, or you hand him a pink slip in his pay check. Did you understand any of those definitions?"

"Yes, and I love it. How do we do it?" She rubbed her hands together in anticipation. She liked this idea and it promised to be a lot of fun.

"Done."

Karen blinked a couple of times and her hands seemed stuck together. "Done? Are you pulling my leg?"

He rotated the camera to look at her legs. "Nice legs if you're human and into that sort of thing. But no, I don't think I have hold of them. You feel something?"

"Tell you what. If you would go down to shipping and lay down in front of the pallet mover I might pull your leg. However there isn't anything in this office I can pull your leg with. The arms and sensors in shipping are extremely sensitive. I wouldn't hurt you."

Karen's mouth dropped open and Henry focused the camera down her throat. "Nice tonsils, perfect teeth, we did an excellent job on this one. Call shipping for a pickup. Close your mouth Karen, you look like you're catching flies."

She closed her mouth. "What do you know about catching flies? There has never been a fly in this lab. Never mind. Forget I asked. You might be reading some sort of sensor on a garbage truck."

Just the thought made her shiver. Nasty.

"Actually..."

"I said, never mind. What about Karl Adder? Is he really fired?"

"Yes, I put the pink slip in the employees payroll computer which prints all the pay checks. Come pay day Karl will get a pink slip informing him he is no longer an employee with this company. To add insult to injury, he will get a termination check also. A very, very, small termination check."

"At the proper time he will want to see Bill Chambers and complain about getting fired. At the right moment he will receive a phone call from Bill instead. Bill will tell him he had second thoughts about their partnership and he doesn't need his services anymore. And because of the numerous complaints about how Karl runs his department, Commercial Technologies board turned him down in their review. They decided it was in the best interest of the morale of the company to terminate him. Bill will tell Karl he tried to save his job but he couldn't."

"If Karl runs true to form, he will threaten Bill that he will go to the board to tell them about their deal to sell your department to ACME. Bill will quietly point out he has no proof and he will be labeled as a pathological liar and Karl will never work for another large company if he tries anything."

"That should be the end of the conversation. Karl will be fired and have such a hatred for Bill he won't ever try to contact him or talk to him again. Bill will think Karl had second thoughts about their plans and quit the company. Bill will be afraid of contacting him for fear of someone finding out their plans to sell your department. He won't want to be associated with Karl under any circumstances."

Could Henry see the future? She had to ask. "How do you know all of this and why would Bill tell Karl what you just said?"

"Because, I’m the Bill Chambers, Karl will be talking to on the phone. The percentages are excellent it will go pretty close to what I said. There will be some deviations which I can handle. Neither one will suspect it isn't the other who they’re talking to. They both think they have a private line bypassing security so they can take care of any phone calls you may receive. Voice duplication isn't a common everyday item and neither one will suspect they are talking to a machine."

It took Karen a second to realize Henry was talking about himself when he mentioned machine. She never thought of him as a machine, even when she was first putting him together.

"You and David excel in doing the impossible. You question the unknown everyday. What comes naturally to you is beyond comprehension to most. Besides we aren't talking about a couple of wizards here. Bill and Karl are administrative, not research minded."

Yes, Mr. Chambers?" Betty's intercom from Bill's office had buzzed.

"Betty, the memo I dictated last month and asked you to read back to me every week?"

Yes, Mr. Chambers?"

"I want to change it. Now this is what I want you to take down."

Betty took it down as he requested but she wasn't sure she understood it any better than the first one.

"Have you got it down like I told you?"

"Yes, Mr. Chambers."

"Good, now come in here and read it back to me."

"Now, sir?"

"Yes, now."

"As you wish, sir." Boy, was he getting strange lately.

When Betty approached his desk, Bill had his head down checking the inventory for office supplies Commercial Technology had used this past month. He glanced up. "Yes, what is it?"

She fumbled around for a few seconds before she spoke. "Your memo, sir."

Someone must have handed her a memo and now she was about to read it to him. "Yes? Well go ahead."

Betty looked embarrassed. She had to clear her throat before she could start. "It wasn't wildcat you were hunting shithead. It was a full grown saber-toothed tiger. You can't find enough protection to keep it from eating you alive. Signed by yourself. The Asshole."

"What did you say to me?" Bill couldn't believe Betty would read a memo like that to him.

"I’m sorry sir, but you dictated it to me just now, and were very explicit about your instructions to come in here and read it back to you. I’m only following your orders, Mr. Chambers." She knew she wasn't going to be right no matter what. Mr. Chambers was losing it.

"I called you on the phone and dictated this to you?" Someone was going to pay for this.

"No, sir. You buzzed me over the intercom and dictated this memo." Why was he asking all these questions? She was only following instructions.

"You mean someone else called you on the intercom and told you to give me this message?" Somebody had tapped into his intercom. It was the only explanation.

"No, Mr. Chambers, it was you. I should be able to recognize your voice after six years." Betty was beginning to suspect Bill was worse than she thought. He had been giving her some pretty weird memos lately.

"Betty, I want you to call security and have your office and mine swept for bugs. I want a check run on the wiring on the intercom between our offices. I want a check on the phones and anything else they can think of."

He stood up and shouted it into the air. "Listen, you. I know you’re there. I’m on to your little tricks now. In a couple of minutes we’ll know who you are and where you are. I promise, you will regret the day you were ever born. Your ass is mine."

Bill sat down and smiled to himself. Shithead huh? The person who bugged his office was going to eat those words before he was through with him. Bill made a clinched fist and stabbed the air. Yes! They had gone too far this time and he had them.

When Bill began shouting to no one, it scared Betty to death. But when he started poking the air with his fist and smiling, she knew he was over the edge. She didn't think he had been under enough stress lately to cause all this. The only thing she could think of was to humor him until she called for help.

"I’ll call security right away Mr. Chambers." She didn't tell him she was also going to call medical and a psychiatrist. She hoped he didn't get more violent than he already was.

The security team arrived and so did the psychiatrist. The psychiatrist told Bill he was there to find out when Bill thought someone first began to bug his office, which was a half truth. He wanted to know when Bill first started losing hold on his sanity.

Bill was happy for most of the day thinking about what he would do to the person who had bugged his office. In fact, he was so happy he was humming and singing little songs to himself. Something Betty never heard him do before.

By the end of the day, Bill was shouting at all of them. "What do you mean, you can't find anything? What do we pay you people for? You are obviously overpaid no matter what you make. All you have to do is follow the wiring from my office to Betty's and see where the guy tapped into it. Is that too complicated for you or do you want me to draw you a map?"

"Bunch of morons! Betty, call up another security team." Bill knew he was smarter than any of these clowns.

Elmo was feeling very pleased with himself until Bill begin shouting at them. They had went over his office with active and passive surveillance equipment. If there had been any electronic bugs planted in Bill's office they would have found them. "Mr. Chambers, there aren't any listening devices in your office. We checked out your intercom and there are no taps. It goes from your desk to your secretary's desk. The phone checks out. There aren't any listening devices set up outside the building. No one could be listening in to your conversations, much less sending your secretary memos through your intercom."

"You pay us to know what we’re doing, Mr. Chambers. We earn every penny of it. We’re good. There’s no way anyone could be listening in or sending messages to your office."

Bill's face was beet red and he was pounding the desk with his fist. "Now you listen to me, you hair-brained idiot. I don't care what you say. Someone is bugging my office and calling my secretary over my intercom. If you aren't capable of doing your job, I’ll find someone to replace you."

Bill hadn't forgotten the incident with the security courier. Someone was listening in. He was shouting orders at Betty. "Get someone from an independent security agency up here. These guys couldn't find their heads if they were looking in a mirror."

Betty didn't think she needed to phone anyone the way Bill was shouting. They probably heard him all over town.

The outside team they hired, likewise, found nothing. They swept the office for active and passive listening devices. Step for step they followed the same careful meticulous search for industrial espionage. Elmo's team had done a good job and they did a good job. They ended with the same results. Nothing.

Bill Chambers was in a rage for days afterwards. He told Betty to keep calling security companies until she found one who was competent. She promised she would but she also made sure the psychologist was informed of everything Bill was doing. She knew Bill had gone off the deep end.

Henry was amused they missed the obvious. It seems what is sitting right in front of you, you can't see. Although the intercom is only wired from Bill's office to Betty's, it has a wall plug for power. Any equipment on the same side of the power transformer serving the same building can use the electric line for listening or transfer of messages.
There was no need telling Karen what he did. She wouldn't approve. Figuring the percentages gave ninety-six percent she wouldn't approve and only four percent she would. He decided he could live with a four percent approval rating.