Chapter 32

After a particularly vigorous morning lovemaking session, I was lying in bed cuddling my girl. Shauna started giggling. "Darling," I said, "this is a particularly inappropriate time for laughter. What's so funny?"

Shauna raised herself on an elbow and looked into my face. Her red-blonde hair was tousled, and she had a crooked little grin on her face. She looked adorable. "I was just thinking," she said, "when I first came here, Robbie said to me, 'You'd better watch yourself with this guy. You could wind up not just in his house but in his bed.' Well, I did wind up in your bed, didn't I?"

"Yes, ma'am, you did. And I plan on keeping you here permanently. However, right now we'd best worry about getting to work at a reasonable hour. Let's either have breakfast or perform our toilettes."

We got out of bed and put on our robes. Shauna's mood changed. She was staring into space. I said, "Sweetheart, you were so bubbly just a minute ago. Now you're pensive. What's up?"

"Well," she said, "I've been thinking seriously about something for quite a while. Robbie and I have talked off and on about going into business together. Now with this big contract from Borealis, she's really got things going. How would you feel if I were to quit my job at the CBC?"

"I think that might be a good idea. We certainly don't need your income. Hell, we don't need mine, for that matter. But I'm just a news junky. It's too late to teach this old pooch any new tricks. Speaking of finances, we could easily afford to put some capital into the business. You could start off with really good facilities."

"I thought about that. It wouldn't cost all that much. The basic computer systems would be quite reasonable -- even the server. Visuals would be a piece of cake. We wouldn't have to farm anything out. I can draw, and Robbie is a terrific designer. We're both good photographers, and digital still photography and video is a heck of a lot cheaper to work with than film. You don't have to pay for all that expensive lab equipment and stuff. And after we're up and running we might even be able to use our facilities to produce stuff besides websites."

"I think that you and Robin should start investigating this seriously."

She kissed me. "Thanks, Pat. I knew you'd be supportive. You always are. You're my special angel."

"Fallen angel, perhaps." I kissed her cheek. "Right now, little love, I have to get my old ass in gear. If I don't get to work soon, I won't have a job to go to."

I quickly checked my email and then got into the shower. I've always found that I do some of my best planning in the shower. Today was going to be very tricky. Steve Finnissy would be my major interview subject. He and I had hardly spoken for years. In fact, he was the only chair of a parliamentary committee who'd never been on my show.

The interview would concern political rather than personal topics, but it could still be a problem. How should I approach Steve? He was an eloquent and testy little bugger. His debating skills were legendary on Parliament Hill. I decided to avoid anything remotely argumentative. I'd cede the field to Steve. All I needed from him was whatever his committee's intentions were in the investigation of Jake Singh's misdeeds. Of course, I knew far more about Jake and his paramour than Steve or anyone on his committee. More than they might ever know. That would be my ace in the hole. I couldn't reveal what I knew, but I could use that knowledge to judge the investigation.

I finished my toilette, dressed and went downstairs. Shauna had prepared a lovely breakfast, and I fell to with a will. After I'd eaten, I sat sipping my coffee quietly. Shauna, of course, always knew when something was bothering me. She asked, "It's the interview with Finnissy, isn't it?"

I sighed, "Yes, love, it is. Steve Finnissy and I had a falling out in university. We've not spoken since."

"But surely you can both be professional about this."

"I certainly hope so."

"What sort of man is he?"

I sighed again and poured myself another cup of coffee. "He's always been a straight arrow. A bit too much of one for my taste. The sort of 'righteous' person with little sympathy for anyone who strays from the straight and narrow. And I hear that he hasn't changed. I have a feeling that he'll go after Jake with a vengeance." I sighed again. "I really feel sorry for Jake. He's always been a nice guy. He was just the wrong man in the wrong job."

Shauna thought for a moment. "Maybe there are some people who just can't handle power and authority," she said.

"Yeah, I think that's exactly right. Jake probably should never have been a cabinet minister, and he should especially never have been in charge of a portfolio that dealt with such huge sums of money." I stroked Shauna's pretty cheek. "Now, my love, it's time that you got your lovely little self ready to go."

Shauna went upstairs to get dressed, and I occupied myself with the files that our researchers had given me. Most of them dealt with Steve Finnissy. And they painted a picture of the same self-righteous little bastard I'd known years ago. But he was also very well-connected politically and had represented the same New Brunswick riding for many years. The more I read about him, the more convinced I became that his holier-than-thou attitude was, in a way, his undoing. If he'd been more willing to compromise, he'd no doubt have been an influential cabinet minister by now. As it was, chair of the ethics committee was the highest post he'd held. Perhaps someone in the Prime Minister's Office thought it would be funny to put a stiff-necked bastard like Steve in that job. Now he could easily turn into a loose cannon. If he handled the inquiry into Jake Singh's affairs the way I thought likely, he could easily bring down the government. And I was sure that being a member of the governing party wouldn't deter him. This might be his chance to make a name for himself. It could be the Canadian Watergate. The hearings of the Watergate Committee in the States led to President Nixon's resigning in disgrace. Several of the members of that committee rose to political prominence. And some of the most outspoken committee members were Republicans.

When I arrived at my office, I continued to prepare for the Finnissy interview. Even more than usual, I didn't want to leave anything to chance. As a wise old broadcast journalist once told me, "If you don't know the answer before you ask the question, maybe you shouldn't be asking it. You're just doing your research on the air and wasting the audience's time with your fishing expedition." One of his favourite phrases was "committing television on the people." I didn't want to be guilty of that, and certainly not with this interview.

As I expected, Steve Finnissy arrived promptly, even a few minutes early. He shook my hand, and we exchanged a few polite words. He was accompanied by a small retinue, a fresh-faced young man and two young women. He introduced the young man as his secretary, Richard Gibson, one of the women as his assistant, Germaine something, and the other as an intern. I didn't catch her name. The three young people looked around the studio. I could see that they were nonplused and impressed at the same time. Steve spoke in rapid French to Gibson, his secretary. The young guy replied in a thick Acadian accent. Acadians are the forebears of the Cajuns of Louisiana. Many of them were evicted from their farms by the British in the 18th century. As a result of that brutal diaspora they settled in Louisiana, at that time a French colony. I'd been to New Brunswick many times, and I had a roommate in University who was from Moncton, Steve Finnissy. So I could follow the gist of the exchange, and I knew what was coming next. Steve said, "Pat, I know that you'll have your little earphone on. Could I perhaps have one as well, so that Richard can help me if I get stuck?"

Bert Smythe was directing that afternoon, and he answered. "Certainly, Mr. Finnissy," he said, "Mr. Gibson will be welcome in the control room, and I'll show him how to talk to you." He turned to the young man. "But I'll have to warn you, Mr. Gibson, it may be very disconcerting for Mr. Finnissy to hear a voice in his ear when the interviewer is talking to him. Please don't talk at the same time as Mr. Connolly."

Gibson answered in perfect English. "Don't worry. I've had media training. In fact, I have a degree in journalism from l'Université de Moncton."

I took Steve to makeup. While we were in the chairs, having our faces and hands coloured orange, Steve looked at me in the mirror and said, "Pat, I hear that you're engaged. Congratulations."