Vatican Assassin

by Mike Luoma

Time passes slowly for BC. The next two days seem to take at least a year to go by. All he can do is watch video or stare at the walls, the red and gold, the pictures of Jesus from all the world's faiths. The Cardinal's study is fine, but it's not his style. Finally, after two days, an LSC comes to the Cardinal's study with the news BC's rooms are ready. BC is up and able to walk short distances, and walks himself back to his quarters.

  The glare from the gold on the walls of that study was beginning to hurt my eyes and give me headaches... Thank God I'm finally getting back into my own rooms. Can't talk right, yet. But I've still gotta try to get through to the Vatican.

  BC opens the door to his stateroom and gasps. His Covert Communications Unit is out in plain sight, sitting on his folded-out desk. It's sealed tight, looks like a small chest.

  The repair crews probably didn't know what it was when they came across it. But seeing it just sitting out there in the open made my heart jump a beat.

  He surveys the rooms, his surroundings. They've done okay, though he can see several spots where panels were replaced and seals rejoined. His bedroom is entirely new construction.

  Would have been bad dreams if I'd been here when they hit. Good thing I got to go on that wild goose chase. Right. Sure.

  BC sweeps the room for bugs and sets a scrambler. He can't be sure there weren't UIN agents in the construction crew.

  Never can be too paranoid in this business.

  The room checks out clean. He opens up and switches on the CCU. The screen lights up with the waiting pattern. He opens the voice channel, turns on the visual.

  "Jove, this is Diana, are you receiving?"

  A face appears on the screen, an old black man wearing a white skullcap and robes. Pope Peter the Second.

  "Well, hello, Diana, I was walking by the receiver as you signaled in. Nice of you to finally call. You know it's not nice of you not to call your father once in a while. Especially your holy father."

  Holy shit! The old man himself!

  "Hello, sir. Good to see you. I haven't been able to speak, you see..."

  "Yes, yes, heh, you sound like you've been drinking! Don't worry about it. I heard all about your accident from the Cardinal. Now... what's the real story?"

  BC tells him about Nita Bendix recording him as he called in on his CCU, his chase after her, and her escape on the UIN ship. He decides to keep the unknown ship to himself, for the time being. Peter stays silent, considering, as BC spins his tale. There's a long silence after BC finishes. Then the pope rebukes him.

  "They know you did the hit, Campion, they must, or they wouldn't be hitting us back."

  "With all due respect, sir, they were already on their way to hit us, before I even did the hit. The timing is wrong. One couldn't have triggered the other because they were already on their way to attack."

  "Is that so? That may be true for that first attack, but, as you've probably heard by now, they've hit us again, just last night. By now there's been certainly enough time for them to have digested the information that woman must have brought to them. You've brought them down on us this time!"

  "I'm... I'm sorry, sir. But it's not my fault entirely, sir, You know this is certainly a situation that's been brewing..."

  Pope Peter cuts him off, "Did she get anything else?"

  "Well, I'm not sure, sir. She might have."

  "How so?"

  "Well, when I was coming up from the access tunnels after doing the hit, I hit her with a hatch door I was opening. I thought I hit her over the head and knocked her out, at the time. I thought it was just random coincidence, that she was in the wrong place at the wrong time when I kicked the hatch in. It was the first time I had ever seen her. I wondered why a Lunar Security Cop was there, figured she was on rounds. Now, obviously, I can't be sure of any of that."

  "This is bad, BC my boy. They may have you. Your entire mission could be compromised. Your cover could be blown entirely. I thought you were better than this."

  Holy Shit.

  "Pope Peter, sir, look, they haven't even said anything. They're maintaining media silence. Wouldn't they have blown this open? If they had me on this, they'd be broadcasting it loud and proud, getting all the mileage they could out of it. Their silence says they don't have anything more than they've had before, even if they're attacking us straight on. C'mon, sir, you know I'm better than that. Father, forgive me!"

  "Don't get cute on me, boy, I won't have it," Peter snaps at BC.

  "Sorry. But it's not right to pin this all on me!"

  "Of course it isn't. But I've been wanting to blame somebody, and you're elected. Plus, you've been incommunicado, and that's been frustrating. I had to let you have it.

  "Tough love, my boy. Tough love," the old man chuckles to himself, then looks BC in the eye across the miles.

  "Look, your cover may well be blown, BC. They may just be waiting, holding on to the information, holding on to any damaging evidence they have, waiting until the most damaging moment possible to let it out."

  "Then why not now, to justify their attacks, to turn the tide in the war by making us out to be murderers?"

  "I don't know. We can't know, can't be sure. But they are hitting NcC targets. They've got to know about Vatican involvement in UTZ war efforts, BC."

  "With all due respect, sir, who doesn't?"

  Pope Peter lets out a small laugh. "Some know we are involved... but most could never guess to what extent. If you've opened us up, exposed us, the general public most likely will not understand or sympathize with our means to achieving their ends."

  "So, then... what now? Should I come back?"

  "No! No, that would be suspect, too suspicious. What I want you to do right now is forget about the OPO, just for the time being, and get under your cover, completely. For the time being, I want you to be the best Public Relations flack the Moon has ever seen! Issue some press releases, follow the Cardinal around every day, and accompany him to every event. Be the spin doctor you're supposed to be!"

  "I guess I can do that, sir."

  "You will do that, Campion, those are your orders, make no mistake. In the meantime, I'll have the office find you some low-key, low profile assignments that keep you off the UIN radar. All they'll see is the public you, the flack-hack. We'll be in touch soon, Diana. Jove out."

  "Diana Out."

  Damn. This is gonna suck. Tough love, my ass. By Jove.

  Chapter Eleven