Predatory Ethics Book I - Mad Gods

Chapter 20 - Allotted Existence -

TIME: FEBRUARY 24TH, 1971. DIGBY ISLAND, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA. 

A new decade began, not so much with promise, but providing a much needed rest and distance from the chaotic past ten years. The first few months were a continuation of points from the 60s.

In March, the New English Bible was published with the changes made at the Second Vatican Council. In Kosta’s opinion, it read like a desperate attempt to garner new converts, but he knew what the changes meant. They were a dim reflection of the alterations happening in the Vatican, itself.

Kosta half listened to another publicity stunt by Lennon’s banshee — something about them having dual sex change operations. Kosta wondered why they would even bother, considering she already had the poor bastard’s balls. With them in her mouth all the time, it was actually amazing she could say as much as she did. He put aside his animosity for the hideous geisha when he saw Adam was inconsolable about Paul McCartney’s decision to leave the Beatles. Given Yoko’s constant grandstanding and public statements Kosta couldn’t blame him. It must’ve caused a scene in the Lennon household when Paul’s news upstaged Yoko’s dual sex change story.

In May, the Blues were beaten again in four games, this time by Boston as Bobby Orr’s Bruins swept the cup. A whole lot of music was released in 1970, but Adam and many others were transfixed by the breakup of the Beatles. Bridge Over Troubled Water, War, Whole Lotta Love, Lola, and The Tears of a Clown, didn’t distract him from Let It Be, and Long & Winding Road. These were forever etched on his psyche. Kosta couldn’t help but roll his eyes at the adolescent melodrama.

Television wasn’t much of a distraction either but movies proved to be welcome diversions from the ache in Adam’s heart. George C. Scott’s Patton and Dustin Hoffman’s Little Big Man were both historically based fiction that gave Adam a new appreciation for history. He began devouring biographies about any number of prominent historical figures. Their monthly forays into Vancouver turned into biweekly outings so that Adam could visit the public library, check out more books and return his previous selections. They could have bought the books but with Adam averaging 10 books a week, they didn’t have the space to store them all.

Five Easy Pieces and Catch 22 brought out his subversive side, and Kelly’s Heroes gave the dissenter a spine. Outwardly, Adam didn’t have a problem with anyone, but he was opposed to most public opinion, almost as a matter of pride. Whenever he spoke about the weather, a show or a movie, it turned into a debate and, at times, open argument. Adam liked to test beliefs, simply to see how deeply they were ingrained.

November ended with another assassination attempt, this time in the Philippines, when a Benjamin Mendoza, a Bolivian painter dressed as a priest, tried to stab Pope Paul VI. Ordinarily, this would not have meant much to Kosta, except that when he read the name of the bumbling murderer, Kosta recognized it as someone who had shown interest in long forgotten texts and lore. A few days later, things got even more bizarre when he received a letter from the same man, postmarked days before the attempted murder. In the letter, the man detailed why he was after the pope and asked Kosta to bear witness to his martyrdom. Benjamin wrote that he was determined to kill the impostor who now sat on Peter’s seat. He went on to claim he had proof that some of the top cardinals had replaced the pope with a look-a-like, programmed to do their bidding. Mendoza was not clear about the nature of this bidding, nor the motives behind the believed switch, whether diabolical or political.

Newspaper reports went on to say that Ferdinand Marcos foiled the attempt with his karate skills, striking the kris knife from Mendoza’s hand with a chop, leveling him with a flying kick. The report must’ve been true, because Imelda saw it all. Kosta was grateful that Mendoza didn’t contact him any more and that the letter was not discovered in the ensuing investigation. Dealing with secret organizations was hard enough, but when devout police and pious cops were added to the equation; Kosta just didn’t want to deal with it. He built a nice, uneventful life in the woods of Digby and the defenses he had constructed would take years to reproduce anywhere else.