Black Angel by Jack Dayton

Author:Jack Dayton [Dayton, Jack]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781734728804
Publisher: Self-published
Published: 2020-04-20T22:00:00+00:00

* * *

Dacey Dunn waited in the control booth watching Serge Kovak expound about the threat of immigration and the insidious foreign “invasion.” Out of the corner of her eye she caught the director rolling his eyes, glancing sideways at the sound technician. She knew that even some of the on-camera talent enjoyed imitating him for laughs behind his back but Dr. Kovak had a following. His rhetoric was catnip to those who never missed his spots. Each new nugget of vitriol he served up bounced back and forth like a pinball from Twitter to Facebook to YouTube every time he was featured in prime time VisionNet programming.

Even as she found his philosophy questionable, she had to admit he’d done well for himself. He had used his position to present himself as a legitimate scholar. From there he’d moved to contributor at VisionNet, then a regular commentator on the ideological food fights of the weekend shows and then a daily radio show on VisionNet’s internet radio channel. Quite a trajectory. One that might be enviable if it were not so nakedly self-serving.

Dacey had no illusions. She was not an expert voice. She was a journalist. That was all she had ever aspired to be. She was relegated to the feature spots, the feel-good fillers like the little boy who gave his allowance to send cards to the VA residents for Veterans’ Day or the Go-Fund-Me account that pays for an injured soldier’s trip home to be reunited with mom. The stories had meaning but she was ready for something else. A fresh story, something meaty, above-the-fold.

She watched as Kovak finished his segment and the team went to break. He removed his mic and swung his chair around to exit the set. She stepped from the booth. Now was her chance.

“Serge?” She tried to get his attention even as he continued to the door of the studio. She trotted after him now. “Dr. Kovak!”

He turned then, his quizzical look shifting to exasperation. She caught up to him, ignoring his condescension. “Dr. Kovak, I know you’ve been reticent to talk about that night at the attache’s house but there’s something else you might want to be aware of. I spoke with a staff officer at the Norwegian embassy.”

Kovak’s reaction was all Dacey could have hoped for. She had his complete attention now. “And? Why is this something that would mean anything to me?”

“He was helpful. He referenced a number of factors that might resonate with you. Things that, if we compared notes, might connect some dots.”

“Dacey, you are adorable when you mimic a real reporter.“

“You know, Serge, that continental insouciance may dazzle your cult followers but I am less impressed. My reporting has opened up some interesting avenues for inquiry. You can benefit from this, unless there’s a reason you don’t want to pursue it.” Her head was down but she slowly lifted her chin to look up at him, her unstated question hanging in the air.

“You know, you are right, Dacey. You are looking more and more each day like a member of the lame stream media.

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