“Yes,” Kearney replied. “We have a bank of cameras to consult too. Let me show you, while Jim here gets made up.”
“Argh,” Sotello groaned. “I forgot about the face lift part of this.”
Sotello saw the makeup woman approaching as Sykes laughed. The woman was the same one who had prepared him for the show the last time. She smiled, and waved to him as she walked up.
“Hello Scarface,” she laughed.
“I might have known you would hear about that.” Sotello shook her hand. She gestured for him to follow her.
After getting made up, Sotello returned to the waiting area he had been in the last time at the station. Jane, in a headset, smiled over at him. Sykes wore a headset too, but kept her eyes on the crowd, as Denton and Stevens conducted the first minutes of their show. Jane returned her attention to the stage. Five minutes later, she gave him a countdown with her fingers as he moved to go out on stage. Sotello listened to his introduction, and when he heard the polite applause, he knew his visit would be different this time. He shook hands with first Denton, and then Stevens. Sotello saw a different attitude in their faces.
“Thank you for taking time in your busy schedule to visit us again, Mr. Sotello,” Stevens remarked. “Your adventures since our last meeting seem right out of a Tom Clancy spy novel. Do you feel you are still in danger?”
“The FBI task force, working on the case, have some new leads to follow,” Sotello replied. “They have only begun to make some headway, so there still may be some risk.”
“Have you considered backing off on your inflammatory rhetoric, to help your own situation, Mr. Sotello?” Denton asked pointedly. “It must be dawning on you about the danger your family may be in, because of what some people call hate speech on your part.”
Sotello did the unexpected. Instead of firing back as Denton hoped he would, Sotello broke into laughter. The genuine raucous hilarity, which overcame Sotello for a few moments, had the audience beginning to laugh. Sotello looked at Denton, as he dabbed at his eyes with the back of his hand.
“Oh man,” Sotello gasped. “I needed that.”
“You think it funny that you have terrorist groups attempting to kill you,” Denton asked, his mouth tightening in anger.
“No, I think it funny you need to blame me for it.”
Laughter rippled slightly in the audience at Sotello’s straightforward response.
“Can you address the question, Mr. Sotello,” Stevens inserted.
“Be specific then,” Sotello said, leaning forward. “Do not assume in your question facts which are not in evidence. Your idea of inflammatory speech will never be the same as mine. Secondly, your ludicrous attempt to equate the attacks on me, as some wish on my part to put my family in danger for a headline, makes me want to hurl.”
Applause in the audience made Denton look up with some surprise. “Okay then, have you considered a change in tactics since the attacks?”
“No,” Sotello replied forcefully. “I want everyone in this state to know what I am going to do if I get elected Governor of California. I do not want anyone to think I will back off of anything I promise in this campaign.”
Sotello looked out over the audience. “We are at war. Please do not vote for me if you believe I should let illegal immigrants, arms shipments, contraband, and terrorist weapons of destruction flow unchecked over our borders. You will be disappointed, because I intend to make the California borders and coastline, into a giant land mine for people subverting the safety of the United States.”
Silence greeted the statement at first, followed by applause, starting first as a ripple, and then growing into a huge wave which stunned even Sotello. Denton cut to a break. Sotello saw the look of surprise on Denton’s face, as he huddled quickly with his broadcast partner. Stevens nodded her head in agreement. Backstage, Jane Kearney groaned.
“Uh oh,” Kearney whispered. She spoke quickly into her headset mike. “Get the Governor ready quick. The barbeque is not going as planned.”
Sykes heard what Kearney said, just before she heard loud footsteps behind her. She spun, reaching into her handbag, putting a hand on her 9mm Berretta. Four plainclothes officers, with badges around their necks, entered the backstage area. They made their way to the backstage area where Sykes and Kearney stood. Kearney put up a hand in a quieting gesture, and Sykes straightened from the crouch she had assumed.
“Identify yourself Ms.,” the lead officer said to Sykes.
Sykes pulled out her ID, and showed him her credentials. He seemed mildly surprised, but simply nodded. Sykes put away her ID wallet in her purse.
“Did I hear you say Governor, Jane?” Sykes asked.
“Yep,” Kearney admitted. “Our two erstwhile morning hosts were supposed to engage Mr. Sotello in what was to be a shouting match, over his supposedly dangerous publicity hunting. He has again ate their lunch, so now comes the shocker.”
Sykes began to respond, but Jane gestured for her to be quiet. As they came out of break, Red Davidson, the Governor of California, was escorted into the area by another of his security detail. Sykes looked him over professionally. Davidson was tall, thin, and immaculately dressed. His made up face contrasted handsomely with his well-groomed gray hair. He smiled condescendingly at Kearney, as she gave him a hold sign. Sykes felt sorry for Sotello. The snake pit, Sotello had been expecting, might have been preferable to what was actually in store for him, in her mind.
“We have a surprise for you and the audience, Mr. Sotello,” Denton said loudly.
“The Governor had some last minute business in the Bay Area,” Rachel Stevens added brightly. “He consented to an impromptu visit when he heard you would be on the program, Mr. Sotello. Will you please welcome, ladies and gentlemen, the Governor of California, Mr. Fredrick Davidson.”
A hush of silence in the audience again evolved into loud applause as Davidson strode across the stage to shake hands with an enthusiastic Johnny Denton, and Rachel Stevens.
“May I present your Republican challenger, Mr. James Sotello,” Stevens continued, as she introduced the two men.
Sotello had stood, along with Denton and Stevens, as Davidson came in from backstage. He caught Sykes’ worried look, and nodded at her, smiling. Sotello turned to Davidson, just in time to see Davidson striding towards him with his hand thrust out, as if he were going to bowl Sotello over. Sotello stuck out his hand, to intercept Davidson’s forward charge.
Davidson had planned to walk into Sotello, using his forward motion as their hands clasped, to throw Sotello off stride. It backfired on California’s Governor, when his hand became engulfed in Sotello’s bear trap of a grip, and Davidson’s forward motion came to an abrupt halt, making it appear like the Governor had run into a wall. When Sotello was sure the Governor was halted, he released the stunned Governor’s hand with a smile.
“Glad to meet you Governor,” Sotello said, as the audience quieted quickly. A light tinkling of laughter echoed in the audience.
“Yes… well, I,” Davidson stammered, trying to regain his composure. His tradcmark bluster had drawn a blank so far. “It’s good to finally meet you, Mr. Sotello.”
“Call me Jim, Governor,” Sotello replied. “As Mr. Denton so aptly put it, this is a surprise.”
Denton had been waiting for something, which obviously was not going to happen. He gestured for the Governor to have a seat opposite of Sotello. Davidson sat down in the seat as indicated. This put Davidson in a position, which could be interpreted by the audience to be the two hosts, and the Governor, aligned against Sotello. Knowing this to be the truth of the situation anyway, Sotello just leaned back and enjoyed the moment.
“Governor,” Rachel Stevens began. “We have heard in news reports, Mr. Sotello has no objection to a debate, and he would welcome one. Such being the case, has your campaign contacted his to set up a date yet?”
“We actually have been trying to get something set up for weeks now,” Davidson replied. “I believe some problems
exist as to the time and place. Would that be the case, Jim?”
Sotello, knowing his whole campaign might swing on his next few words, leaned forward in his seat, with his hands clasped earnestly in front of him. “Anytime, and anywhere, Governor.”
The audience burst into applause in appreciation of the drama. Again, Sotello’s straight ahead approach to things caused momentary confusion in the three he faced. Denton was the first to recover as the applause died down.
“Well, Mr. Sotello,” Denton said with marked condescension in his voice. “Are you speaking rhetorically for the audience, or do you make your offer in a literal way?”
“I mean every word I say,” Sotello answered, still leaning forward.
“Governor,” Stevens said, turning to Davidson. “Did you have something in mind?”
“Why yes Rachel,” Davidson said strongly, warming to what he thought was an opening. “I would like to propose a debate for next Monday, the 15th of October, at a meeting hall in Los Angeles, which the League of Women Voters has graciously offered for our use.”
Strong applause from the audience heralded the Governor’s offer, and Denton quickly followed up on it. He turned to Sotello, smiling broadly.
“How about it, Mr. Sotello?”
“I have a better idea,” Sotello said brightly, as a hush fell over the audience, and Davidson began to get an uneasy feeling. “How about a debate tomorrow night, right in the Capitol Building? The sooner the better.”
A roar of approval went up at Sotello’s counter offer, as Davidson’s heart sank right into the heels of his shoes. He tried not to show the frustration coursing through him at being trapped by a political newbie. Davidson recovered, and began waving at the crowd to quiet down, as he smiled, and nodded at them agreeably. Denton and Stevens, for their part, could see no good ending for this thrust of Sotello’s.
“Mr. Sotello…” Davidson began.
“Jim, Governor,” Sotello interrupted.
“Ah yes… Jim then,” Davidson acknowledged. “A moderator for an event like this must be chosen, and the venue must be prepared well in advance for the media. I am sure you would like to take some time to prepare. Surely we…”
“Excuse me Governor,” Sotello interrupted again. “I know what I believe in. I certainly do not need to rehearse it. How about you?”
Laughter, and another roar of applause greeted Sotello’s Coup de Gras. Davidson’s mask of amiable arrogance dropped momentarily, revealing an elemental, naked rage. His hands balled into fists at his sides as he sat tensely in his seat. To his credit, he controlled the anger threatening to undo a quarter of a century of slick California politics. Davidson forced a smile to his lips, which never came close to reaching his eyes. The crowd again quieted in anticipation, as Rachel Stevens waved off her producer’s signal for commercial break.
“I do not believe the Capitol building would be an appropriate arena for political debate in front of the media,” Davidson offered lamely.
“I have watched a number of spontaneous debates erupt from there,” Sotello countered. “One of the most dangerous places in the world, lay between one of our state congressional representatives and a camera. As for a moderating panel, how about our two hosts here?”
As another wave of enthusiasm washed over the audience in the form of a standing ovation, Denton looked at Stevens helplessly and shrugged. In the wings, Sykes was stifling a full out bout of laughter with both hands, as Jane Kearney covered her microphone with her hand and whispered out of the side of her mouth.
“Put a fork in them, they’re done.”
As the crowd sat back down, Denton turned reluctantly to Davidson. “Would Mr. Sotello’s idea be acceptable to you, Governor?”
“Ah… I will have to… that is, I respect both of you very much,” Davidson explained. “But how many debates have either of you moderated.”
“We can handle it Governor,” Stevens broke in. “What time would be acceptable to you?”
“Can I get back to you on that?” Davidson asked quietly.
“Certainly, and then we will contact Mr. Sotello,” Denton agreed. “Well, we have gone long in this segment, so please forgive us if our next segment is a little short.”
They cut to a break, and Governor Davidson rose to leave. The look he gave Denton and Stevens, as he stood up, emitted anger in waves. “I’m sorry, but I really must be on my way. I will contact you with the information you will need to get things rolling on this. Ah, good to meet you, Mr. Sotello.”
Sotello shook hands with the Governor again. “Yes, Governor, it has been my pleasure.”
Some polite applause followed Davidson into the backstage area, where he turned angrily to Jane Kearney. “How could you let this happen?”
“Let what happen, Governor?” Kearney asked calmly. Sykes stepped back away from the two, still smiling.
“You know very well what, Ms. Kearney,” Davidson hissed. “This setup was a circus. How dare you disrespect the Governor’s office in this manner?”
“Oh, I see,” Kearney continued calmly. “The wrong meat got barbecued, and now it’s the grill’s fault.”
“Why you…” Davidson looked as if his head were about to explode, as he took a step closer to Kearney. “I will ruin this show. You will never…”
Sykes stepped between the Governor and Kearney. “I think you need to take a moment, Sir.”
“Who the hell are you young lady?” Davidson said loudly, as his security detail came up around the three.
“I am Special Agent Janice Sykes, FBI,” Sykes said, taking out her ID, and holding it up for Davidson to see. “I know you did not mean, as a public official, to threaten the livelihood of a member of the media, Sir? Not in front of a federal agent, please…” Sykes saw, out of the corner of her eye, the hand of Davidson’s head of security reaching for her arm.
“You do not want to lay hands on me, Butch,” Sykes said, never taking her eyes off Davidson. The security man looked to the Governor, and Davidson waved them back.
“As I was saying Governor,” Sykes continued. “You may want to rethink this outburst, and go on with your business.”
Davidson straightened, pulling on his suit coat. “Yes, well, I think this whole matter to be shameful. I will never appear on this program again.”
Davidson turned away abruptly, as Kearney turned to cue Stevens the break had ended. Kearney and Sykes watched Davidson leave with his retinue of security officers.
“I doubt there will be any reason to have him on the program after a certain 5th of November,” Kearney chuckled. “That was awesome Jan.”
“I loved your barbeque line,” Sykes laughed. “You don’t mind if I steal it for another time, do you?”
“The grill gives up all rights to the FBI,” Kearney stated solemnly.
Chapter 41
Staying On Message
“How in the world did you pull that off?” Sykes asked Sotello, as he steered the Dodge back towards his office. “I thought when they pulled the Governor out of no where, you’d panic, or at least miss a beat. You acted like you really were glad to see him.”
“I was,” Sotello replied truthfully. “If Denton and Stevens were up to something. Having the Governor show up unexpectedly was the lesser of all evils. It could have been a whole lot worse.”
“Like how?” Sykes persisted. “You never even blinked. If I would have been in your place, I would have freaked.”
“Yea, right,” Sotello laughed. “I heard about your little run in with Davidson backstage, from Jane. It didn’t sound to me like you were impressed with the Governor in the least.”
“Hell no,” Sykes said with a wave of her hand in dismissal. “At least not after you cut his balls off on stage. I dealt with only the shadow of the man.” Sotello laughed harder, and Sykes joined him.
“You know of course,” Sotello began.
“Yes,” Sykes broke in. “This means war.”
“You are getting good at this,” Sotell
o commented truthfully. “Davidson will pull out all the stops now. I don’t know how he will do it; but he will make the capitol debate, I foisted on him, into the Tora Bora of the campaign. The rest of the way will be brutal. If he has anything we do not know about, it will all come out in the papers between now, and when I meet him tomorrow night. We’ll see how well we covered the bases.”
“What could he have?”
“He could pound me about the circumstances surrounding Ellen’s mugging last month, while she was working on a case for me. It turned out to be the boyfriend of the woman she was to keep tabs on. He beat her up pretty good. Craig and I took her home from the Placerville Emergency Room. It was a very close call.”
“Craig mentioned something about that, when we were talking yesterday at your barbeque, before I decided to get stupid,” Sykes said. “The guy wound up getting thrown in a cement mixer that very night, and then sent guys after you at your home.”
“He thought I had something to do with his accident,” Sotello explained. “So he decided on setting me up for a hit. The whole thing ended when we captured the guys he sent, inside my house. They ratted him out, and if he ever gets out of the wheelchair he’s in, he’ll be facing charges. I had a feeling Johnny Denton had it in mind to hammer me in the head with that one today.”
“What could he say?”
“He could have insinuated any number of things,” Sotello replied. “Maybe though, like Adrian told me before, I would have audience’ sympathy, even if he could prove I had settled with the guy. Denton would not have done anything to make me more popular, so he came up with what he thought would really throw me. I’m sure Davidson had something to do with it. In any case, Adrian will probably be mad that I acted so rashly.”
“Could Denton have proven you did a Death Wish on the guy in Placerville?” Sykes asked.
“Craig and I took care of Ellen the night the man was beaten. He was found by the side of the road with a gun in his hand,” Sotello said calmly. “If the Placerville police could have nailed me for the man’s beating, they would have.”
Sotello: Detective, ex-FBI, ex-Secret Service (DeLeo's Action Thriller Singles Book 1) Page 46
