Painted Hands: A Novel by Jennifer Zobair

Author:Jennifer Zobair [Zobair, Jennifer]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi, azw3
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Published: 2013-06-10T22:00:00+00:00

26

BEN DROPPED A copy of the Boston Herald on Zainab’s desk.

“What?” she snapped. “What now?” She had finished her second cup of coffee before 7:00 A.M. and was halfway done with her third. Eleanor had decided to make a play for the nurses, but she wanted to meet with them immediately. Zainab was trying to rearrange her schedule and prepare talking points. As far as she was concerned, her plate was full.

Ben pointed to an article. “Read.”

The article detailed local reaction to the federal hate-crimes legislation and specifically the inclusion of sexual orientation and gender as protected classes. The reporter quoted Alan Burke, the Democratic front-runner, the one either Fred Whitaker or Eleanor would run against next November, as welcoming the legislation as “long overdue.” Fred Whitaker was on record as “vehemently opposing this thinly veiled attempt to criminalize thoughts as well as actions” and said that the legislation infringed on his constitutional rights to freely practice his religion. When the reporter asked him to explain that last remark, Fred replied, “Read the Bible. Sodom and Gomorrah. Nothing ambiguous about that.”

Zainab was bothered by the fact that no one had called her to get Eleanor’s opinion. Eleanor was not the front-runner, but she was keeping the race close, and most reporters covered her with the same frequency as Fred Whitaker or Alan Burke. Plus, it pissed her off that a piece about hate crimes based on gender would fail to include the only viable female candidate in the race.

“Why didn’t they call?” Zainab asked. “Get me the reporter on the phone.”

“Keep reading,” Ben said.

She skimmed down a couple of paragraphs. Sure enough, there was a quote from Eleanor: “I have always opposed any sort of so-called ‘hate crime’ legislation. A crime is a crime. We do not need, nor should we want, the United States government digging around into its citizens’ thought processes. With a murder, thoughts are not the problem. Killing is the problem. We should punish killers. Period.”

Zainab groaned. “When did she talk to them?” She pulled out her cell phone and checked the messages she’d been ignoring. There were a dozen or so from local reporters. Two from Darby hoping for, “optimistically, a clarification.” And one from Chase Holland.

Zainab dialed Eleanor’s private number.

“Zainab, what is it? Is it the talking points? Just e-mail them. I’m about to get on the shuttle.”

“Eleanor, did you talk to the Herald about the hate-crime legislation?”

“The what? Oh yes, I did. A chipper young man. David something, I think.”

Zainab looked at the byline. “Woods.”

“Yes, that’s it. He asked for a response and I gave one.”

“He called you directly? And you answered?”

“Goodness, no. I ran into him at dinner the other night. Is there a problem?”

“Possibly.” Zainab sighed. “We’re trying to distinguish you from Fred Whitaker. To make inroads with women voters who might not ordinarily vote for a Republican candidate. To sell you as a live-and-let-live, New England kind of politician.”

“Exactly.”

“And on this issue, your position is virtually indistinguishable from Fred’s.”

“Nonsense. Fred is a homophobic bigot.

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