The Dawn of Evil

Chapter 1.4

He arrived at the coffee shop a few minutes early. Finding a secluded table in the back corner, he took a seat. Chris watched the door apprehensively willing himself not to fidget. There was so much riding on this bill getting passed and, at the moment, Dugan had the upper hand. He sighed as he realized that he was nearly powerless in this situation. For now, Chris reminded himself. In politics, everything can change in a heartbeat. Once he was able to extract the needed information from Dugan about his motivations, then he could sway him back into the fold, Chris was sure of it.

Before long, Pat pushed open the heavy, glass door. Glancing around the shop, he quickly spotted Chris and waved. A large grin spread across his face. As Chris watched Dugan move across the busy café, he couldn't help but notice how incredibly light he was on his feet. The man was practically skipping like a jovial child at recess. As if by some kind of magic, his corpulent frame didn't seem to protest.

Once Dugan arrived at the table, they hurriedly shook hands out of habit and took their respective seats across from each other. Pat pushed his chair back farther to make room for his ample stomach.

Taking in a deep breath, Chris began, "So, what is this all about?" Completely disregarding the question, Dugan responded, his voice low, with another. "Did he visit you last night?"

"What?"

"Did he visit you last night? You know, Bartholomew." Dugan whispered the name of the demon as he repositioning himself in his chair.

"Yes. But I don't understand why that matters." The comment caused a look of reproachful shock to radiate across Dugan's face, but Chris continued regardless, "I'm here to talk to you about the Healthcare for All bill, which you've single-handedly railroaded."

"I'm appalled by your attitude," Dugan proclaimed indignantly. "What does it matter, Christian? Really? It's the only thing that does matter." He clucked his tongue and crossed his arms before continuing. "What's happening is incredible. And we're a part of it, Chris." He smiled, revealing his shocking, overly bleached teeth. "It means so much."

Deciding that the only way to move forward was to backpedal, Chris said with as much conviction as he could muster, "I agree, Pat. I know that the world is about to change and it's the most exciting thing that we'll see in our lifetimes. Hell, it's the most exciting thing that has happened in at least a millennium."

Chris could see the approval that was starting to settle on Dugan's face, so he continued, lowering his voice. "Can I be honest with you?" Dugan nodded expectantly, leaning in like a preteen girl engaged in gossip about their crush. "I partied a little too much after Bartholomew left. I was so overwhelmed by the grandeur of our roles, that I poured myself one too many glasses of scotch."

Dugan chuckled and replied, "Believe me, I wanted to get into the bottle too, but April keeps me on a short leash these days. I only have my wife to thank for my current lucidity."

Chris forced a smile and advanced his embellished story. "Well, then I came into the office this morning and I had heard that you'd killed the bill. It was a great deal to process in my current state and I just can't fathom why you'd do it. I was more than a little upset," Chris confided.

"Do you really want the truth?"

"Of course."

"Entertainment." Chris tilted his head, trying to understand what he had just heard.

"I'm sorry. Did you just say "entertainment?"

Pat smiled again and laughed heartily. "Yup. If you think about it, nothing matters anymore. Why not take advantage? Think about how many interviews we'll get to do. You get to play your sympathetic character, 'the man who wants us all to come together to do what's right for the people'. And I get to play mine. The ideological progressive who doesn't want to make concessions. I can't allow insurance companies to make fortunes off of our country's most destitute and disadvantaged." He said theatrically with a wink.