Page 24 - Just Deserts

The Decimator

Surrounded by ‘Kalogeros for U.S. Senate’ posters, pamphlets,
buttons and bumper stickers, as well as several telephones and a fax
machine, Connie Gegenschein looked the part of a harried campaign
manager trying to make do on very limited resources. Her telephone
had been making suspicious clicking sounds lately, setting her to
wonder if it were bugged. But the back-room boys at Sunderbar
headquarters would not find any sort of illegal donations being called
in by sinister interest groups bankrolled by Moscow or elsewhere: the
pittance pledged was from the minority of Kalogeros supporters able
to contribute anything at all from their meager personal funds.
She glanced at her watch and sighed, leaning back in an old
creaking office swivel chair salvaged from someone’s garage. On her
desk was a note reminding her that a representative from
Hollywood CinemaTech was about to arrive. Gegenschein did not
find the company name familiar, but a show-business connection
could not be dismissed lightly: celebrities could donate time and
money—or at least their names on a letterhead—to the faltering
campaign. She made an attempt to tidy up the papers on her desk,
telling herself that a professional should look like one, especially
when dealing with potential high-rollers.
A knock at her office door brought her to her feet. No
receptionist, she thought: not a great first impression. She adjusted
her smile and admitted the visitor. He was short and olive-
complected, of no determinable age. Behind him he pulled a small
dolly, to which a large carrying case was strapped.
Noting her surprise, he quickly said, “Good afternoon, Ms.
Gegenschein. I am Vincent Kenostaphos, vice president of
Hollywood CinemaTech. My card.” He handed her a finely-
embossed business card from the breast pocket of his jacket.
“Please excuse the paraphernalia. I did not know what sort of
video equipment you people had here, so I brought my own. But
first, let me explain a few things.”
Connie indicated the lone guest chair in the crowded office, and
took her own seat. Her expression had become strained; was this
man dangerous? She looked at the card.
“I will be showing you some very interesting footage in a minute,
Ms. Gegenschein. It is important for you to understand how it came
23