Slaret was reading the newspaper behind his desk, when someone unexpectedly knocked on the thick oak doors closing him off from the rest of the floor. From the sound and intensity of the rapt, he judged that it was his secretary, a cheery blonde that was not hired for her skills as a secretary but rather for her looks.
“Come in.”
Sure enough, it was his secretary wearing a blouse that was a tad too small. Just the way he liked it.
“What is it?”
“There’s a Mr. Douglas requesting to see you. He says it’s urgent.”
“Ok let him in. No wait; tell him to wait a few minutes. I want to finish this paper.”
“Oh have you read about what happened to Robert Barnes? A shame isn’t it?”
“Yes. Hope he gets well soon.”
With that said, the nameless secretary walked out of the room, her hair tied in a ponytail bouncing behind her. After he saw the door close with a gentle click, Slaret went back to his paper.
ROBERT BARNES IN COMA
Robert Barnes, a respected reporter at this paper was found shot outside the abandoned factory district outside downtown Boston where he was immediately rushed to the hospital yesterday afternoon. He had been apparently been shot by a rifle as he was coming out of a factory. According to police reports, there were papers scattered around his body that they hope will determine who would shoot a prized member of the community. Just a week before, he had given an undisclosed amount to the children orphanage which would have allowed it to continue to open its doors to orphans instead of being demolished for a new building complex. According to Barnes trusted friends on this staff, he went to the factory district frequently to meet informants during his investigations in factories and businesses. Mr. Barnes will be moved from Massachusetts General Hospital to the elite facility at Kingdom Hospital in Maine where they are better suited to deal with coma patients according to hospital staff. Any witnesses or anyone with information regarding this attempt on Mr. Barnes’ life are urged to call the police and give information. All hearts on our staff goes out to Barnes’ wife Molly, and his son William…
“Let him in.” he said to the secretary through the door.
Sure enough, it was Douglas, the one he had hired to kill Barnes who did not.
“I thought I told you to kill Barnes,” he merely said coldly.
“But I couldn’t sir! He’s the hero of the people!” almost pleading with Slaret.
“You have failed the Party,” he merely said. “You’re lucky I had prepared for every contingency. Now Barnes is just in a coma and not dead. Maybe he will prove himself useful…In fact this is better than him dead…”
“Not dead? Yes he is! I saw the bullet go right here!” his hand hovered in front of the general location where his heart would be. “He must have lied bleeding there for at least 20 minutes! He’s dead!”
“Read the paper for yourself.” With that, he threw the newspaper he finished reading at him, hitting Douglas squarely in the chest. He looked at the paper and stared in amazement at the news.
“He’s not dead!?”
“Indeed,” was Slaret’s simple reply.
“But wait. Isn’t Kingdom Hospital funded and staffed by people of the party?”
“Indeed. Now get out of my office. I am expecting a very important phone call.”
Douglas walked out of the office, still clutching the newspaper in his hands like a child with candy and with a face of astonishment and wonder. Just as the door close, the phone started to ring.
“Hello?”
“This is Dr. Raymond Shaw of Kingdom Hospital. All things are ready as you asked for and we will be ready to begin in about an hour.”
“Excellent. Let me know when the operation is over and whether it is a success.”
“Yes sir.”
