So, what if...

The Photograph

The photograph of the American president sleeping with the Russian president’s sixteen-year-old daughter had long been a chess piece held by the Russian leader. Every time, the American president threatened to do anything that went against Russian interests, the threat of its release stopped him cold. Slowly but surely, the U.S. was becoming a satellite of Russia. The Ukrainian internment camps were just the tip of the iceberg. Book banning and the rise of the Russian Orthodox church were the most recent evidence of Russian influence. Vodka sales had gone through the roof. Russian oligarchs were buying thousands of acres of real estate. American participation in NATO was a thing of the past.

The Russian photographer who took the photo mysteriously disappeared a few years ago. Rumors circulate that she now lived in Albania and was blackmailing the American president. Why and for what was unknown. Both the American and Russian government were trying to find and arrest her. Although in Russia’s case, they would rather poison her. The Russian President wanted sole possession and control of the photograph. His daughter, now eighteen, had slept with many world leaders with her father’s approval. It gave her a sense of power. She hoped it translated into a career in politics or alternatively one in acting. She had classic Russian good looks. Her blonde hair, large features and gray eyes were typically Slavic, but her curvy petite body type was atypical. She was flirtatious and extremely intelligent and knew how to manipulate men with ease. Her father considered her his secret weapon. At an early age, she attended meetings with world leaders and often sat next to them. The British Prime Minister named her the Siberian Serpent or even less flattering- The Russian Whore. Rather than being upset by the nicknames, she reveled in them. The more publicity and notoriety the better.

***

The Ukrainian internment camps in Calabasas were rife with infections. Covid had returned to the U.S. The new mutation resembled Ebola. Patients bled into their lungs and exsanguinated soon after. Corpses were piling up in the camps. The American government refused to help the internees dispose of the bodies, so the Ukrainians had to resort to mass funeral pyres. Medical supplies were scarce, and few vaccines trickled into the camps. Doctors Without Borders and the few other medical volunteers were allowed into the camps intermittently. Svetlana, the only Ukrainian medical doctor in the main camp had her hands full. She begged the volunteer doctors for more vaccines and medical supplies. Their ability to provide this assistance was restricted by the government. The vaccines were only partially effective against this new mutant anyway.

Paramilitary police roamed the streets of every major city in the U.S. They arrested anyone who violated the color ban. Blue and yellow clothing flooded Good Wills around the country. Books such as 1984, It Can Happen Here and Inside The Third Reich were no longer available. Several pastors around the country hailed President Ronald Downing as the second coming. They portrayed his wife, Isabel, a devout Evangelical as a Mother Mary figure. Religious minorities were marginalized and people of color demonized. The U.S. had become a fascist state. Members of congress and senators feared repercussions if they objected to any of the president’s policies.

***

Teddy, a bipolar semi-successful novelist was receiving his weekly infusion of Interferon for prostate cancer when he had an epiphany. Downing had to be taken down and it seemed that it was unlikely to happen politically. The new Covid variant could be the solution! He had to share his idea with the infusion patient sitting next to him. John had a form of leukemia and was also treated with Interferon. He had extra credibility because he was a doctor and an infectious disease specialist. As were most of the infusion patients at UCLA, he was a left leaning liberal. He hated Downing and his policies as much as anyone.

“John, I just had an epiphany. I know how we can get rid of Downing and most of his cabinet.”

John looked up from his E-reader, shifted in his chair and turned towards Teddy. He had had many conversations with Teddy and found him amusing but a little crazy. Still, he was intelligent, astute and politically savvy. It would be worth listening to him.

“Okay, I’m listening.”

“What if we could be asymptomatic carriers of Covid?”

“It’s possible. How does that bring down Downing?”

“Imagine this! One of us contracts the virus and gains access to the president. We infect him without his knowledge, and he dies. It would be the perfect crime! No one could trace his death to us since we were asymptomatic.”

“Teddy, Teddy, you have a vivid imagination. Your plot may be good for your next novel but in real life it’s far-fetched.”

“Why? We are all vaccinated and many of our fellow infusion patients are receiving Interferon and are vaccinated. The president is a notorious anti-vaxxer. I have read that Interferon is antiviral. Haven’t you noticed that not one of us have contracted the virus even though we are immunosuppressed? I have been exposed to Covid twice recently and I have no symptoms. Isn’t it possible that I am carrying the virus? Seth and Gregg are still politically connected to the Republican party despite leaving it years ago. They can probably gain access to the president and be silent assassins.”

John chuckled as he answered: “There a lot of holes in your plan.”

“Go ahead, I’m listening.”

“Where do I start? First, we haven’t proven that any of us are asymptomatic carriers. If Interferon was an effective treatment for Covid, don’t you think medical researchers would have studied it long ago? We could be just lucky and the next exposure to Covid could kill anyone of us. Secondly, let’s say your hypothesis proves to be true, then how do we avoid infecting innocent bystanders along the way? Thirdly, isn’t any talk of assassinating a president considered treason?”

Teddy smiled. “Aren’t you intrigued by the possibilities? You could make it your next research project. Not only will you be possibly helping in the war against Covid, but you may also be taking down a president. Nobel Prize anyone? No one needs to know of our plan.”

John shook his head and chuckled before answering: “Teddy, you’re something else! I’ll think about it.”

*** 

While Teddy was recruiting other infusion patients to his outlandish plot, a team of investigative reporters were tracking down the Russian photographer. Rumors of the existence of the damning photograph had been circulating for years. The increasing demise of democracy had made its discovery the holy grail. One of the news outlets had offered a large reward for it. They had even put ads in an Albanian newspaper, hoping to convince the photographer to produce it, if it existed. Months passed without response, so they sent their best investigative reporters to Albania to search for the photographer.

 Opposition to the government and its policies was growing. People were desperate to rid themselves of Downing and his cronies, but his enablers had a stranglehold on the senate and congress. Elections, if held, were two years away. In the meantime, Covid raged, the economy tanked, and minorities suffered. Still, Downing’s’ supporters remained steadfast. He was hailed as a biblical prophet and savior.

The photographer finally came forward and produced the photograph. She received the reward but was found dead a week later. No one doubted the identity of her murderer. The photograph was received in the U.S. with skepticism. Downing and his supporters insisted it was AI generated. Yet some doubt started to creep into the minds of some members of congress. A small investigative committee was formed. They discovered strong ties between the president and Russia and were convinced the photograph was authentic. Impeachment proceedings were initiated.

In the meantime, Teddy wrote a successful novel, 'So What If?' in which the president had died of Covid. One of Teddy’s silent assassins had infected him.

Ironically, President Downing died of Covid several months after its publication. No one knew who infected him. A year later, an ambitious reporter suggested that Teddy's novel wasn't fictional. The conspiracy theories began to appear all over the internet. Congress opened an investigation. Teddy and his fellow infusion patients were called to testify. Their lives became intolerable as they were harassed by Downing supporters. Teddy's book fell off the bestsellers' lists and he was no longer the darling of the talk shows. Despite the fact, he was exonerated, Teddy fell into a deep depression. His novel was no longer popular and he would never again achieve the notoriety or success of 'So What If?'

Life imitating art is not always a good thing.