“Shame?” she repeated with exasperation to the titular head of the nation. “You have none, and for that you have my sympathy. Even with a horrific mass shooting, you need Hope Hicks to script your empathy.

“You say you want to end the human sacrifices and protect our kids at school. But arming overworked and undersupplied teachers is the act of a fool. You simply refuse to recognize the problem is the guns. Is that because you’re afraid of the monstrous N.R.A. and disarming your big game-hunting sons?”

With beady blue eyes, the snake watched his victim gasp for air. He ignored the note from Hope to “Pretend you care.”

“Oh, dying woman, you really don’t get it,” he said. “The N.R.A. poured millions behind me early — earlier than any other candidate in history — and I never will forget it.”

Her muscles clenching, her organs failing, the woman found herself wailing. “It is just like when you promised a ‘bill of love’ to save the Dreamers. But you let that collapse in Congress because of Stephen Miller and the other alt-right schemers.”

The woman winced at the metallic taste in her mouth and rasped: “You could have gotten your crazy wall but insisted on ending chain migration, even when you took advantage of it to bring in Melania’s Slovenian parents. What an abomination!

“Speaking of family, you want your son-in-law to run the world, but he can’t even get a security clearance. Unfortunately, to the law and his disclosure forms, Jared never gave adherence. Oh, what a dork. Given your interest in trade, you might want to export him back to New York and in him stick a fork.”