Suicide King (The Jake Samson & Rosie Vicente Detective Series) Read Online Free Page A

accommodation with whatever actually is? I don’t have a lot of faith in political organization, in political contests. Lots of screaming and yelling and stupid, petty point-making and all it ever amounts to, in the end, is who gets to take home the cash and the power.”
    He nodded. “That’s right. There’s been a lot of disagreement in our movement about whether we should enter the electoral process at all. The Greens have run some local candidates but have been pretty leery of anything on a larger scale. That’s why we broke away. We wanted to go farther. But even among the Vivos we have some people who don’t think we should be going for the governorship yet. We even have a candidate who’s running specifically so that, if he’s endorsed, he can refuse to run. I think it’s a tricky issue. Especially when it comes down to splitting the vote, maybe hurting people in the major parties who feel as we do, winding up with the wrong people in office. Very tricky.”
    What was wrong with this guy? He wasn’t self-righteous enough, didn’t have the God-is-with-me attitude you expect to hear from a politician, especially a politician with a cause.
    I decided to poke him harder. “I seem to remember reading some newspaper stories about the Greens in Germany,” I said. “The impression I got was that they’re pretty far to the left. Is that where you people stand?”
    “I’m afraid the press is simplistic,” he said. “The Greens have a slogan: ‘Neither right nor left, but in front.’ And that’s how we feel, too. We advocate nonviolence, something neither political extreme understands. And Marxism is as materialistic as capitalism. It’s the sanctification of unbridled production that’s destroying the world. I don’t think any of the old formulas provide the right answers. It would be nice,” he said, smiling, “if the workers of the world
would
unite and stop insisting on consuming everything in sight.”
    I was staring at him. I could hardly believe my ears. Pam was laughing. She threw me a triumphant look.
    “How are you going to achieve all this great stuff?” I wanted to know. “With a strong state that will wither away when it’s done what it needs to do?”
    That cracked him up. “Strong states don’t wither away. Not ever. I think you need to read some of our material on grass-roots democracy and small-scale organizing.”
    “Maybe I will,” I said, smiling. I was enjoying the man. “But I try to avoid reading nonfiction. If I’m going to get depressed or pissed off, I figure it’s best to do it with fictional characters.”
    “I’m glad to hear you’ve managed to avoid reality,” Pam said. Her tone was cool. She liked me as long as I didn’t mess too much with Richmond. She seemed to be losing patience with me. So was I.
    “I keep trying.”
    At that moment, there was some excitement near the door and a tall, handsome older woman entered with a small entourage. There were some shouts and a lot of applause.
    “Rebecca Gelber,” Pam said for my benefit. Richmond’s opponent caught his eye and they both smiled and waved. At the next moment, a thin, dry-looking man in a dark suit— now here was a man who actually looked like a butler— came up on our other side and, apologizing for the interruption, asked for “a few words” with Richmond. Richmond looked suddenly very serious, and maybe even a bit tired. “Be right with you, Carl,” he said. Then, turning back to me, “I wish you would take a better look at us. We could use more people who think, who don’t take anything on faith. You’re an original, Jake. So are we.”
    How could you not like a man who says a thing like that?
    Then he shook my hand, told Pam he’d see her later, and moved away. I caught a glimpse of Rosie, in the middle of the circle around Gelber. She was talking to the candidate, and her ears— Rosie’s, that is— were pink with joy. Pam touched my arm.
    “Listen, Jake, I’ve got to take care