Carter's Recourse - 28. Chapter 28

"Dark skies loom over the House of Commons as thunderclouds gather inside. A political storm looks set to blow the Thorpe Liberal Government out of office and straight out of the front doors of Parliament on their first day in office."

Will folded the newspaper and looked over the rims of his glasses across the breakfast bar at Lisa. "Great..." he murmured, "day one and we're already in trouble."

"You knew that going into this," Lisa replied to him, peeling the top off of a muffin and buttering it. "The Party's in trouble and Bob Hesston smells blood."

"True," Will said, reaching out to scoop up his coffee mug, and refilling it from the pot sitting between them, "I just didn't expect it to be this brutal. Listen to this..." He turned the paper over and began to read again, "Prime Minister Thorpe resembles a sacrificial lamb left out for the wolves as the true people responsible for the Benevolent Fund Scandal run for the hills. There is no doubt in this reporter's mind that the Liberal Party is on a respirator begging for someone to pull the plug..."

"Ouch," Lisa replied. "Have you caught the Sun? They have a neat cartoon of you on the front bench in club gear sitting next to the Cheshire Cat..."

"I'm a cartoon?" Will leaned forward to take the paper from her, looking over the cartoon and the editorials surrounding it. "They make me look like a bored teenager..." he complained, closing the paper and shaking his head.

"They're attacking your age and your sexuality, it's all they have to go on," Lisa reassured. "Don't worry about it, this will all settle down soon."

"I'm not worried," Will snapped defensively, mixing cream into his coffee and returning to his seat. "It's just my age has nothing to do with the situation in Parliament right now."

"It's okay," she said smiling at him, "your riding polls show you still well ahead in popularity; if anything, your constituents are responding well to your new... prominence in the party."

"Right," Will said shaking his head. "Still, it strikes me as a whole lot of fuss over nothing."

"Someone's bitter this morning," Andrew said coming through into the kitchen, still wrapped in the borrowed comforter that he had used while sleeping on the couch. He shuffled over to the coffee pot and smelled it, screwing up his nose and setting about making tea for himself instead.

"You're missing out on the funnies," Lisa said, snatching the paper with the cartoon and showing it to Andrew, who chuckled at the bad caricature of Will.

"Oh," Andrew said, as he tried to stop laughing, "they really captured Thorpe's smile..."

The banging from the front door had all three friends turning at once as Brody swept into his house, tanned and in a designer suit, sunglasses perched on his nose and hefting a suitcase.

"Okay," he said setting his cases down, "why is it every time I go out of town one of you guys ends up in a crisis? This time I get back, and Will broke the country..."

"I did not..." Will began.

"Shhh!" Brody said, holding up a finger to silence him. "We should all take a moment and remember which one of us is an elected official, and then remember which of us is a taxpayer..." He stood quietly a moment, before holding his finger up, "That's right, I pay your salary, bitch." He shook his head as he reached for the coffee pot and pouring himself a mug he looked down at the newspapers.

"How was California this time?" Lisa asked jovially.

"Hot, pretentious and artificial, just the way I like it..." He paused and pushed his sunglasses down to get a better look at Andrew standing by the kettle; he stared down at Will, "What, got tired of the sports model so you traded it in for a classic?"

"Cold!" Andrew said, remembering exactly what it was like to deal with Brody. "No, I' bunked on the couch..."

"See," Brody said nudging Lisa, "I'm not the only cold one here."

"Shut up," Will grumbled shaking his head. "I'm going to miss the peace and quiet around here."

"I'm the spice that keeps your life interesting," Brody said, reaching down to steal a piece of Lisa's muffin much to her annoyance. "So what did you do?" he asked, tapping the newspaper.

Will explained the situation that they found themselves in, and Brody listened with interest before taking a thoughtful pause, "Did you ever think of going out and talking about it?"

"He has an interview with the CBC's National..." Lisa began.

"That's not what I mean," Brody said. "Will's not about that kind of politics, everyone is going to be on those shows talking on and on and nobody listens. What you need to do is go on that show...' he snapped his fingers, "with George what's-his-name... you know, the Gen-X and Gen-next show, saying what I want to hear the way I want to hear it."

Lisa shook her head. "I don't know if that's the kind of message we want to..." she began.

"I don't know," Will said thoughtfully. "It's about getting the message out there, right? And Brody's got a point, the people that voted for me watch this show..."

"And it's important," Brody said, "that they see you're out there representing them and answering their concerns in a way that they can understand and relate to."

"The show's got to be booked solid," Lisa said. "I don't know if I can..."

Brody pulled out his cell phone. "Leave that to me, they love this stuff," he said. "Willy here had best pack his bags if we're going to make it to Toronto in time to catch the show."

* * *

Blake sat down and flipped on the television, looking over to where Marc was sitting toiling over his homework. "You can relax, you know," he said, sounding hopeful.

He'd been growing worried over Marc the last few days; it seemed that his friend preferred to mope around quietly, throwing himself into his work rather than actually deal with anything. Blake suspected that it was Marc's way of delaying the inevitable conversation with Will.

Marc looked up from the books he was pouring over whilst taking notes. "Huh?" he asked, blinking and noticing the time--he'd worked through most of the day. It was easier that way for him, just losing himself in his schoolwork. He didn't have to think about Will or the future that way. And the longer he didn't have to think about it, the longer he didn't have to make any kind of decision.

He focused on the television; a political satire sketch show had just come on, and Blake was settling in to watch it. Marc pushed his books away and sprawled out on the couch to join him as the screen darkened to show the inside of a mock news studio.

"Hello, I'm John Newman here in blah BLAH blah BLAH..." The actor, a lightly plump man with a cheese-grater voice, turned to face the screen against the backdrop of a real news centre. "Well, the Liberal Party has a new leader; the former Minister of Canadian Heritage was acknowledged as Prime Minster of Canada this afternoon, leaving us with just one question... how the hell did he win?"

He shuffled his papers as Marc laughed, "We join Prime Minister Thorpe at the Prime Minster's official residence, Twenty-four Sussex Drive..."

The screen cut to show an actor badly dressed up to impersonate the new Prime Minister, complete with exaggerated hair and a massive grin plastered across his face as he rattled the handle of a door clearly marked with a 24.

"Mister Prime Minister, you appear to be having some difficulties..." the anchor said.

"They didn't think I'd be in power for very long so they just gave the keys to Bob Hesston." The actor turned to the camera and straightened his suit, restoring his stupid fake grin.

Blake smirked, "Got that right, they're gonna boot your ass..."

"You're supposed to be a liberal," Marc reminded, laughing at his friend.

"So no one must have been more surprised than you to become Prime Minister." The screen split to show the anchor in the studio and the actor outside.

"Well," replied the actor, "it was a matter of selecting a leader with experience, intelligence and leadership experience," he tilted his head and waggled his eyebrows, "or choosing me."

The anchor paused swallowing that one as the audience laughed loudly, "So what do you feel is the biggest challenge facing you as Prime Minister?"

"Having to sit and stare at Bob Hesston's face all day in Parliament," the actor replied seriously.

Marc shook his head as he chuckled; he had to admit the sketch was funny...

"Some opposition party members have criticised your heavy reliance on inexperienced party member William Carter, stating that he is too young to be a party strategist."

"On the contrary," the actor said, accepting a baby that was passed to him, waving a small pride flag and wearing glasses. "He's already on solid food, which is more than I can say for most of the Liberal Caucus."

Blake roared, and Marc just sat there, his face falling as he sat upright.

"Right..." the anchor frowned. "So let me ask you this, Mister Prime Minister, now that the Opposition and Separatists outvote you in the House of Commons, isn't it time to call an election?"

"Hell no," the actor smiled again, "we'd lose..."

* * *

With the amount of flying Will had done between Toronto and Ottawa over the last year, it was surprising he didn't just move into a plane and be done with it. If it worked for playboy millionaires it could work for him.

This was a short duration trip; he was flying in to do the show and flying back again. Andrew had put up a fuss about being left behind, but Brody had shot him down. They could move quicker just the two of them, and if they were to make it in time they needed to move quickly.

The prospect of doing a news broadcast without Lisa made Will a little nervous, and he popped peanuts staring out of the window at the countryside rushing by beneath them, wondering if this really was such a good idea.

"Excuse me, Mister Carter?" the stewardess asked, holding a portable phone covering the mouthpiece.

Will frowned at the phone, wondering who on earth was calling him on a plane. Lisa, probably panicking about what he would say and trying to offer him some last-minute advice. He nodded as he took the phone glancing at his watch as he put it to his ear, they'd be landing in ten minutes.

"Carter," Thorpe said tightly.

Will sat upright in surprise, "Mister Prime Minister."

"Your press secretary told me you were en route to Toronto for an interview," Thorpe said, pausing on the line to speak to someone that needed his attention before returning to Will. "I am going to need you back for the Cabinet meeting first thing tomorrow morning."

"Right," Will said, and paused, the implications of that sinking in. "Cabinet meeting? I'm not in the Cabinet."

"I'm changing that," Thorpe stated simply and directly. "I am appointing you Minister Without Portfolio. Officially you will have no duties; unofficially, I want you to deal with the government crisis we find ourselves in. Get to the bottom of how this came about and what we can do to stop it." His voice sounded heavy, "I need someone I can trust on this one, and right now that's you, Will."

"I know," Will replied taking a long sigh, closing his eyes as he reflected on the crisis and what the new Prime Minister was asking him to do. "I'll find out what's going on and I'll do whatever I can to stop it."

"Good," Thorpe said firmly. "I will have a couple of my staff transferred to you, and I will want to move your office closer to mine into the East Block--the security is better there. And under the circumstances..."

"I understand," Will nodded, still stunned at the amount of trust Thorpe was placing in him. It wasn't unheard of for an inexperienced MP to be made a minister, but given the current circumstances, the conservative opposition would suddenly have a new target to attack.

Let them come, Will thought to himself, clenching his jaw. "I'll be there tomorrow morning," Will reassured.

Once he had hung up the phone, Will glanced over at his friend Brody, who was lounging back taking another drink.

"Congratulations," Brody said lifting his glass to Will, "Minister."

"You heard?" Will said; the phones were notoriously loud and he would have been surprised had Brody not overheard.

Brody nodded. "You've earned it," he said sincerely. "Look, we'll get you on air tonight, get you settled in, and we can work out what to do afterwards."

"Thanks." Will nodded.

"Just remember to relax." Brody grinned.

* * *

Alicia chewed on her granola bar as she curled up on Will's couch watching the television. Lisa was on the phone to Will giving him a last-minute pep talk before he went on the air. And Alicia was just killing time before Will went on.

She looked over at Andrew, sitting in the arm chair uncomfortably, not liking the idea that Will was off on his own. Overprotective as usual; she'd gotten accustomed to Andrew's presence whenever he dropped by the office. And she knew that was just the way he was. She wasn't about to fault him for being in love. What she faulted him for was that abysmal taste in music he had.

"Can we change the channel?" she asked for the third time, gesturing to the screen.

"Sorry," Andrew said, lifting the remote and flipping through; passing the comedy channel he paused.

"Meanwhile," the comedian news anchor said as he smiled and switched to a standard news format, "citing an imminent threat to his base of support on the religious right, Opposition Leader Bob Hesston today called for a ban that would prevent millions of people from participating in what he called 'the most fundamental institution of civilization.'"

The anchor shook his head as he shuffled the papers on his desk, "Hesston was quoted today as saying 'Dicking around with the sanctity of the Constitution of Canada is the only way to nip this thing in the butt,' and when reporters began to ask him how a vow of love and commitment between a same-sex couple threatens such relationships between a man and a woman, the Opposition Leader, as expected, turned his back and walked out of the room."

The anchor paused for the laughter to die down, taking a sip of water, "A Conservative Party spokesperson later explained the Opposition Leader is acting on solid intelligence that gay men possess biologically incorrect weapons and are not afraid to use them."

He turned his head for a close up, "Earlier, in an exclusive interview with this station, Hesston confided his belief that gay marriage threatens our way of life because the thought of two men together 'gives me the willies.' When pressed, however, Hesston admitted that daydreaming about two women gets him 'a little hot,' unless Rita McNeil is involved." The picture on the screen shifted to show the stout east coast folk singer.

"Hesston vowed he would never relent in defending Canada from any threat to same-sex marriage. The sacred promise between man and woman enjoys a staggering 50 percent success ratio, he noted, an impressive number compared to, say, government, where about 17 percent of all promises are fulfilled."

The anchor suppressed his own laughter as he took a breath, "Opposition Leader Hesston, who proudly counts the 'sanctity of marriage' among his favourite sound bites, blamed the crisis on 'limp-wristed activist judges' and concluded his remarks by saying, 'These people must be stopped from pledging their unconditional love for each other before it's too late.'"

Lisa walked back into the living room, closing her phone, "He's going to be on in a few minutes, channel twenty-four." She sat down on the arm of the couch, chewing her lip nervously.

"Think he will do well?" Andrew asked looking up.

"Will always does well in interviews," Lisa said. "He's a natural at it... just..."

"Yeah," Andrew nodded in agreement, "I'm worried too..."

"You have a security detail on him, right?" Lisa looked over at Andrew.

Alicia started, why would Andrew...

"The Toronto office is keeping an eye on him," Andrew replied slipping his cell phone out of his pocket. "They will keep him safe."

* * *

"Right, so that's what's happening in across Canada today; I would like to squeeze more of it in, but we promise to get more of it in the show later this week." The host, George, shifted on his comfortable couch and casually crossed one leg over the other turning to address the camera.

"Well the Liberals are back in a big way, and like it or not, we are all going to wake up with them tomorrow morning. If you have been following the events of this past weekend then you know that this story has gone from the incredible to the absurd. First the tragic death of the Deputy Prime Minister in a fatal car crash, then the Benevolent Fund scandal that toppled the Prime Minister, and now we had the events of yesterday in the House of Commons where Bob Hesston's Conservative party literally brought Parliament to a standstill and shut down the country." He shook his head at his notes, "We're lucky enough to have the Liberal's newest Minister, William Carter, with us on the show in a few minutes. Many people up on the hill are crediting him with the eleventh-hour nomination that saw Prime Minister Thorpe come to power...as I said, we will have him on in a few moments."

He shifted on the couch, "Now we saw the power play where the Liberals lost a procedural vote on the topic of the war in Iraq, a hotly debated topic in our country today, especially considering its worldwide implications. Now while this is not a confidence vote, we all know that one isn't far away, what with tensions in the House of Commons wound tighter than a Rolex on Wall Street. Accusations are flying across the floor of parties trying to divide the country, of power brokering with Separatists that want to see Quebec form its own country and divide Canada... but we can all count, it's like watching Fox, you're kept on the edge of your seat waiting for someone to score. But we're going to take a quick break, and when we come back, William Carter, the Liberal Party's newest Minister."

Will adjusted the microphone that was clipped to his loose tie, and he looked desperately over at Brody for some kind of support. Brody, however, was busy chatting up the producer, a charming blonde who was hanging off of every word the suave man had to say. Will smiled and shook his head, as the director gestured for him to join George over on the couches in the centre of the studio.

Will nodded as he took his seat, taking a moment to shake George's hand. "Thanks," he said sincerely.

George smiled, "No problem, Brody's an old friend, and I get to interview someone at the heart of this mess. I hope you don't mind, I've got some tough questions."

"No, not at all," Will smiled as he shifted to get comfortable, "ask whatever you want."

"Great..." George turned as the fanfare began announcing the return from the commercial, "Welcome back to the program. As I promised before the commercial break, we have the new Liberal Minister, William Carter, live with us in the studio today..." He smiled as the camera swung around to shine on Will, "Thank you for joining us, Minister."

"Pleasure to be here," Will said with a nod. "Thanks for having me."

"All right then," George said launching into the interview. "You were there in the House of Commons when this all played out; in the space of a weekend your party went from a position of security to fighting for its survival. What's your reaction to that?"

"Well," Will replied, relaxing the way Brody had told him to do, focusing on George and ignoring the cameras altogether, "the key is that we try to remain focused on the issues that are constructive to Canadians, and what Canadians feel are important issues to them." He gestured with his hand thoughtfully, trying to remain as open and as honest as he could, "So long as we don't get sidetracked by procedural motions that have no impact on Canadians we will do that."

George nodded stroking his chin, "Well, you've seen how divided the House is, you've been in the midst of the debates, both yesterday and today, how can the government be confident in governing?"

"The challenge is," Will said leaning forward, "that we need to earn the trust of Canadians. We need to show that this party is progressive and reflects the issues of not only my own constituency, but the whole of Canada. We need to keep our attention focused on issues of relevance such as Public Transit, the Environment and the Economy. These are the things my constituents in Toronto Centre want me to focus on, not debating a war nobody wants--all for political gain."

"Now," George said tapping his papers, "you have a personal history of running counter to your party's wishes in several key areas such as the Environment and campaigning for better infrastructure in our urban centres. How do you feel, now that you are a senior Liberal Party Member and a Cabinet Minister?"

"As all of this unfolded," Will said folding his arms and chewing his lip, "I discovered myself at a crossroads of my beliefs and I found I had to do the right thing and serve my constituents, my conscience and principles. And the truth is, I have a contribution to make a difference and this is the way to do it. I am a strong voice, I stand up for my beliefs and the Canadian interest."

"I am sure you will have plenty of chances to do that on the campaign trail real soon," George smiled grimly. "Would you mind taking some of our call-in questions?"

* * *

Will took a deep breath as he stood in the lobby of the CBC building.

"Relax," Brody said, thrusting a bottle of water into his hands. "You did great, you thought on your feet, and you answered their questions." He clapped Will's arm, "Told you there was nothing to worry about."

"I wasn't expecting the call-in questions," Will replied with a smile as he unscrewed the cap off the bottle of water. "They were rough, what was with the girl from Manitoba?"

"She's a hardcore conservative, and you're a big-L liberal," Brody said. "I wouldn't worry about it; I had to laugh when you answered her comment on gay marriage though..."

"Well," Will said in disgust, "I mean, really. She was being an idiot."

"You didn't need to tell her so on national television," Brody chuckled. "Though at least someone had the balls to get up and say it though Lisa's gonna pitch a fit when we get back. You know she's the one that is going to have to deal with all the right-wing fundamentalists calling in with death threats to your office because you tout the 'gay agenda'."

"You know, I should add an option to the automated thing people get when they call my office," Will said walking through the CBC building towards the parking lot. "If you want to tell me to go to hell, and/or quote scripture at me, press nine..."

"You know, you pull the Trudeau style of rebellion off rather well," Brody said. "Next thing you know you'll be pirouetting behind the queen..." He grinned thinking back to the infamous stunt where the former Canadian Prime Minister had done exactly that behind the Queen of England's back.

"Have you never been to a gay club on a Friday night?" Will asked, shaking his head as they exited the building, Will climbing into the back seat of the black Lincoln town car that was running him around Toronto.

Brody smiled as he leaned on the door, "Well nonetheless, you did a great job tonight; I'll see what I can do about wrangling a few other spots for you, see if we can't drum up more public support for you. Now as for me," he glanced back over his shoulder at the lit doors of the studios, "I have a certain young producer that needs a little something-something, if you know what I'm saying..." He pulled out his sunglasses and slipped them on, as Will shook his head again and closed the town car door.