Hard News

responded to Sutton a lot of “uhms” and “what I means” slipped in. She corrected herself, said the same things twice. She sounded defensive. She tried to look into Sutton’s eyes as she spoke but that just turned her mind to jam. Words came out, about justice and journalism’s responsibility.
    Which was all true but Rune didn’t, of course, tell Sutton one piece of the answer: She never once said,
Why am I dying to do this story? Because part of me wants to be
you. I want to be tall and have crisp blonde hair that stays where I put it, and walk on high heels and not look like a klutz. I want presidents of networks and corporations to look at me with envy and lust. I want a mind that’s as cool and sharp as a black belt’s body. I want to try your kind of power, not mine. Not like magic in fairy stories but the power to cast the strongest kind of spells—the ones that make it seem like you know exactly what to do every minute, exactly what to say
….
    But she talked about the press, about innocence, about Boggs. When she’d finished, she sat back. Sutton must have been satisfied with the response. She said, “All right, let me ask you a few specific questions.”
    These were even worse, though, because they were about things Rune should have thought of herself.
Did you interview the original crime scene team?
(Good idea; never occurred to her.)
Did you talk to any of Boggs’s earlier lawyers?
(Rune didn’t know he’d had any.)
Did he ever see a shrink about his criminal tendencies?
(She never asked.)
    The three of them debated for ten minutes and in the end both Maisel and Sutton nodded and said that the program should go forward as long as the show didn’t claim Boggs was innocent—only that there were some serious questions about his guilt.
    That left only the question of when the story should air.
    They asked her opinion.
    Rune cleared her throat, shuffled papers, then said, “Next week’s show.”
    Maisel said, “No, seriously.”
    And the battle began.
    “The thing is,” Rune said, “he’s got to get out of prison as soon as possible. They don’t like him in there. They’ve already tried to kill him. I told you that.”
    Sutton said, ‘They’? Who’s ‘they’?”
    “Other prisoners.”
    Maisel asked, “Why?”
    “I don’t know. A guard told me he isn’t popular. He’s a loner. He—”
    “Today’s Friday,” Maisel barked. “Rune, to air next Tuesday, the whole program should have been shot and edited by now. It has to be in the computer by Monday. That just can’t be done.”
    “I don’t think he’ll last another week. They tried to kill him once and they’ll try again.”
    Sutton and Maisel looked at each other. Sutton looked back to her and said, “Our job is to report the news, not save anybody’s ass. Boggs gets killed the story’s still valid. We could—”
    “That’s a horrible thing to say!”
    “Oh, come off it,” Sutton said.
    Maisel said, “Piper’s right, Rune. The story is the important thing, not springing a prisoner. And I don’t see how we can do it. There just isn’t time.”
    “The script’s all written,” she said. “And I’ve spent the last three nights editing. I’ve got everything timed to the second.”
    “The second,” Sutton said in a tired sigh.
    Maisel said, “Piper’d have to tape on Sunday night or Monday morning.”
    In a soft, spiny voice, Rune said, “I want the story to air next week.” She folded her hands and put them in her lap.
    They both looked at her.
    Rune continued. “What’s going to happen if somebody finds out that we could have saved his life and we just didn’t get around to doing the story in time?”
    Silence, as Sutton and Maisel exchanged glances. Maisel broke the tension, asking the anchorwoman, “What do you think?”
    Rune felt her teeth squeeze together with tension. Sutton responded by asking, “What else was scheduled for that show?”
    “The Arabs in Queens,” Maisel said. “It’s half edited.”
    “I never liked that story,” Rune offered.
    Sutton shrugged. “It’s soft news. I hate soft news.” She was frowning, apparently because she found herself agreeing with Rune.
    “My story isn’t,” Rune said. “It’s hard news.”
    Sutton said, “I suppose you’ll want a credit.”
    For ten million people to see
.
    “You bet I do.”
    The anchorwoman continued, “But that name of yours. You’ll have to change it.”
    “Not to worry,” Rune said. “I have a