Vatican Ambassador Read Free Page B

Catholics... I bet everyone who wished they were Irish yesterday wishes today that they were only dreaming of drinking like Irishmen…
Chapter Two
    BC finds himself wishing the next week was just a bad dream, wishing he could just wake up and have it all just go away.
    Daniel McEntyre is the star of BC’s nightmare. McEntyre’s poll numbers are rising along with the number of veiled attacks by McEntyre on BC’s influence on Edwards.
    BC ducks the media, merely answering, “No comment,” when they ask him to answer McEntyre’s allegations. He can pretend McEntyre isn’t talking about him as long as McEntyre doesn’t mention BC
    by name.
    Two days before the election, McEntyre finally begins attacking BC by name in public. It’s all over the news as BC wakes up.
    “We need a governor who isn’t tied to the UTZ!” McEntyre’s face shouts off the screen as BC tries to eat breakfast. McEntyre’s a guest on “Lunar Prime Today”. BC has it on in the background while he’s getting ready to face the day. Suddenly it seems McEntyre’s speaking right to him.
    “There are influences on our current Governor. Unhealthy influences, like his advisor Bernard Campion!”
    BC drops his spoon into his cereal bowl with an audible plop and jingle. His jaw drops open as McEntyre’s tirade continues.
    “This fake isn’t even really a priest!” McEntyre shouts. “He’s an agent for the OPO! That’s the Office of Papal Operations… They’re assassins for the Vatican! They kill people for the NcC and the UTZ!”
    McEntyre shakes his fist in the air for emphasis. “He kills people, for Christ’s sake!”
    “So, you allege that this ‘Bernard Campion’ isn’t a priest but an agent and that he,” the news anchor pauses to double check, “is somehow manipulating Governor Edwards to get his and this ‘OPO’s, or the UTZ’s, way?”
    “I could ‘allege’ a lot more!” McEntyre says, but waves the thought away. “Anyone who knows me knows how I feel about Campion.”
    McEntyre looks right into the camera. “I know what you did, Campion! I know you…” McEntyre stops himself. “I know what you did!” he says, as he calms himself down and sits back in his seat. His interviewer comes back on after a brief awkward pause.
    “Well. Daniel McEntyre is certainly a passionate man! That’s all the time we have for now, I want to thank our gue…” Click. BC turns off the viewer.
    That sonofabitch…
    Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. BC’s communicator beeps with a waiting message.
    “BC here, what’s up…”
    “Father Campion, this is ‘Lunar Prime Today’, do you…”
    “No comment!” BC cuts the connection.
    Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.
    “Father Campion, this is ‘News…’”
    “No comment!” BC snarls, cutting them off. “Communicator off!” BC commands.
    “You have 24 calls queued up and waiting…” the unit informs him.
    Great. This is just fucking great. More reason to hate the man! The guy’s giving me a reason to come out of my semi retirement! Gotta respond somehow… not a deadly response, can’t do that… yet.
    BC addresses his com unit. “Answer all calls with the following message. Begin recording: Hello. This is Father Bernard Campion, the Ambassador for the Holy See, Vatican City, and his holiness Pope Linus the Second. I’m not available right now. And I will not be responding to any ridiculous allegations made by any politician who uses the news media to sully the reputations of others for their own personal political gain. Thank you. End recording.”
    “Recording ended. Message sent,” the unit says.
    “Keep using that announcement to answer all incoming messages until I tell you to change it,” BC orders the unit.
    “Answering incoming signals with the recorded message until further instructions,” the unit informs BC. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.
    I thought I told that thing to… oh, it’s the door. Oh no…
    “Who is it?!” BC calls out.
    The door speaker