Chronicles of the Shade – Part II – Episode 3
Chronicles of The Shade Part II
The McPain Conspiracy
By Sam Miller
EPISODE 3
Hildegard Swinton hung up the telephone in her Chapaqua mansion in upstate New York. “You’ll never guess who that was,” she called out to her husband, who was propped up in bed reading the Times in an adjoining bedroom.
Jefferson Swinton removed his reading glasses and blinked at his wife as she entered his bedroom. “It wasn’t Bam Orama, was it, changing his mind about making you his running mate?”
“Fat chance, buddy,” replied Hildy, mirthlessly. “No, it was one of our old adversaries wanting me to kiss and make up.”
“Surely, not Ben Moon?” said the former U.S. president, referring to the independent prosecutor who had hounded him all during his second term.
“No, not him, silly,” said Hildy. “It was none other than our old nemesis, Ricardo ‘Shooter’ Chancey.”
“You’ve got to be kidding. Why on earth would he be calling you?”
Hildy sat on the edge of her husband’s bed. Then she outlined the deal that the former vice-president had proposed to her, all the while studying his face for any reaction. When she was done, she sat up straight, smiled, and said, “So what do you make of that?”
“Well, that beats all,” said the former president. “We all knew what a conniver ol’ ‘Shooter’ was, but I never thought he’d leave the dark side, especially to do us a favor.”
“Oh, he hasn’t come over to the light,” said Hildy. “He just thinks Squintus McPain will give him four more years of Middle Eastern oil profits. Then he can move to Europe and live like a king.”
“Yeah, if his tin ticker holds out,” smiled the former president. “So did you tell him to buzz off?”
“Not exactly,” said his wife. “I told him I’d think about it.”
Jefferson Swinton swiveled his body in order to look squarely at his wife. “You said you’d think about it? Why would you do something like that?”
Hildegard Swinton reached out and grasped his hand in both of hers. Her eyes were beginning to well up, and her lips were trembling slightly. “I thought,” she began, and then she stopped to compose herself. “I thought we had better talk about it before coming to any decision.”
Then Hildy Swinton recounted for her husband the story of their lives together, from the time they had met in college, their law school days, and their partnership in a political career that had spanned more than three decades. She reminded her husband of their years in the Grey House, of the battles they had fought, but not always won, of their being constantly hounded by the jackals of the Repugnican Party, of their dreams to retake the presidency and finish what they had started, and then of the bitter disappointment in being shunted aside by a rank newcomer, someone who hadn’t paid his dues, someone who was taking away what was rightfully theirs, someone who couldn’t possibly lead the country the way that they had, and would again, if only given the opportunity.
Hildy Swinton took a deep breath. Then she said, “If Bam Orama is elected in November, the odds are that he’ll serve two terms. That’s eight more years we’d have to wait for another chance. Chancey has said he can cut that in half.”
Jefferson Swinton gave his wife a crooked smile and shook his head. “Well, that does beat all,” he said. “But you know ol’ Shooter. He’s got more moves than a snake on a skillet. How do you know you can trust him?”
“Well, I can’t trust him, can I?” replied Hildy. “I’d have to go straight to McPain to see whether he’d go along, wouldn’t I?”
“Yeah, and you’d have to get something in writing, too; or at least have a couple of witnesses saying he promised you the position at State.”
Then the Swintons paused, and both of them chuckled at the same time. “I think we’re actually talking about doing this, aren’t we?” said Jefferson Swinton.
Chronicles of the Shade Part II Episode 4
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