--"Rabbit. That’s what we called him when he was a teenager,” President Douglas mused, staring down at his hands. “He was relatively normal until around his sixteenth birthday. Oh Billy," he sighed quietly. "Oh, Billy Rowe. Rabbit." He suddenly looked very tired.
Marilyn remained silent, wondering if the President would continue to share at this intimate level. After all, Senator James was still in the Oval Office. This unusual openness could have unintended consequences in the infinite complexity of politics.
--“They started giving him this drug.” He paused. “What was that stuff?"
--“Mellaril,” his secretary murmured, not knowing if the President really wanted an answer.
--“Yeah. Thioridazine, that was it. I’ll never forget the label on that bottle. After they started that stuff his mouth and lips would twitch just like a rabbit. Weird. Looked just like a rabbit. Kept him sort of straight, though."
Harold James cleared his throat and the President looked up. Their eyes locked, and two things were immediately clear. First, the President was assured that James would not use this information as political leverage. Secondly, James knew that his own sexual orientation would also be off-limits. Marilyn had seen this sort of non-verbal communication for her entire life in Washington. It still astounded her.
James nodded respectfully to the President and left the room. Marilyn picked up the receiver of the black phone and rapidly dialed a series of numbers. She handed the receiver to the President.
--“This is Henry Douglas,” he said. Pull out all the stops. Get him back using any means necessary.”
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