by Tiana Laveen
“He’s not here, Promise!” Rebecca yelled, her voice shaky and full of emotion as she approached, her heels clicking against the floor. “He called in and said he’s running late. I heard you yelling all the way outside. What in the world is going on?!”
Promise raced to the lobby wall to quickly remove the few remaining pictures, then seized the garbage bag full of the pornographic images from one of the woman’s hands. She returned to Rebecca, jammed her hand in the bag, and pulled out a fistful of wrinkled images, showing her. Rebecca adjusted her glasses to see better, then her mouth dropped open.
“I walked in here this morning, and all of these hyenas were standing around gawking. Someone, more than likely Daniel, put up a bunch of pictures of me in the lobby from some movies I did when I was a young adult. I did this because I was trying to make it through nursing school and not be homeless anymore. It’s not a coincidence that these have shown up after my engagement to Gutter. The timing is uncanny. Daniel let me know months ago that he knew about my movies. It was a veiled threat because of his expense reports not being signed off on. He believed it was somehow my fault. He’s been harassing me, Rebecca, and—”
“Okay, okay, let’s all take a deep breath.” Rebecca swallowed, took the garbage bag full of printouts, and Promise by the hand, and began shooing the crowd away. “Promise, we will talk privately in my quarters. The rest of you, get back to work immediately. Our doors open to the public in less than ten minutes. DeMarcus, please get this debris and trash cleaned up. I see a plant was a casualty.”
“Okay. I’ll take care of it right now.” The man shuffled away.
“If I see any of these photos of Ms. Bradford in circulation in this establishment again, or elsewhere from any of you for that matter, you will face disciplinary action and be subsequently fired. Promise, come with me, please.”
Promise snatched her purse from the floor as the crowd dispersed. As they passed the reception desk, Rebecca addressed Abby.
“I spoke to Daniel this morning. Call him and let him know that he needs to get here right away. Do not disclose why I wish to speak with him, please. Just tell him it’s important.”
“Yes, I will do that right now.”
She silently walked with Rebecca down the hall and got on the elevator. Soft music played, perfume scents mingled, and tears welled, but did not fall. Once they arrived at her office, Rebecca immediately opened her personal refrigerator, and removed two bottles of water. She set one down on her desk as she rounded it, then pointed to the chair across from her, signaling Promise to take a seat. Promise sat down, crossed her legs, and tried to control herself.
“Promise,” Rebecca leaned forward, clasped her hands, closed her eyes for a brief moment, and shook her head. “Tell me what’s going on, as calmly as you can.”
Promise explained everything, from the situation with her ex-husband, to the reason she left nursing, to the present day. Rebecca sipped on her water as she listened to each painful word.
“I’m sorry that this occurred. I can only imagine how you feel. It’s terrible.”
Promise hung her head and wrung her hands.
“In all of these years I’ve known you, I’ve never seen you so angry… so hurt. You are typically the voice of reason, composed and cool under pressure. Now that I know the nature of what happened, I can see that your reaction, though startling, was fathomable.”
Promise plucked a tissue from the box on Rebecca’s desk and wiped away her tears. Just then, there was a knock at the door.
“Who is it?”
“Daniel.”
“Come in.”
The door slowly opened, and the bastard peeked inside.
If Rebecca wasn’t here, I’d pick up this vase on her desk and bash your motherfucking face in.
“Sit down, please.”
Promise turned and looked at the piece of shit walking through the door. He closed it behind him, glanced in her direction, then took a seat a couple feet away from her.
“Daniel, something inappropriate, demeaning, and completely against our policies occurred today.”
The man sported a perplexed expression. Promise sucked her teeth, crossed her arms, and looked away. Here comes the Oscar nomination…
“What happened?”
“Someone, or several people, we’re not certain, placed some inappropriate pictures of Promise, in a state of undress, all over the lobby for everyone to see this morning.”
“Well damn, that’s awful.”
“The photos were still shots from some amateur adult films she starred in many years ago. Do you know anything about the photos being displayed here, Daniel?”
He quickly leaned forward as his eyes nearly bucked out of his head. “Me?! You think I’d do something like that?” he said, frantic.
“Daniel, please just answer the question.”
“No! No…” He shook his head. “I would never risk my job to do anything crazy like that!”
“Did you know about the movies she was in?”
Stone-faced, he sat straighter.
“Daniel, I asked you a question. Did you know about the—”
“Yes. I knew about the movies, okay? But I swear,” he turned towards Promise, looking downright scared, “I would never do that to you, or anyone for that matter. Promise, ya gotta believe me. I know we’ve got some bad blood between us, and I know you think I’m a slimeball. We’ve shared some pretty harsh words over this past year, but there are some lines I wouldn’t cross, and this is one of them. Everyone knows we don’t care for each other, but I didn’t do this!”
Rebecca sighed.
“Okay, you two. Right now, it’s your word against his, Promise. Here’s what’s going to happen. I am going to have to launch an internal investigation. I am requesting that both of you please take the next two days off. This situation is far too distracting, so it’s not a good idea for either of you to be here right now, anyway. We need to get to the bottom of who is responsible, and we will. I am quite serious about this. This sort of thing will not be tolerated. Promise, please go home and get some rest. Daniel, if you didn’t do it, you’ll be cleared.”
“Okay.” Promise got to her feet and placed her purse over her shoulder in preparation to leave.
“I’ve got a lot of work to do though, Rebecca. Can I at least work from home?”
“Yes, you’re free to work from home, but please do not come back on the premises until called by me, personally. I will have security walk both of you out—not because you are guilty, but so we can ensure nothing is moved, changed, and there and no more altercations. I will be getting on this right away. It will be paid time off for both of you, until the investigation is over.”
“Okay, understood,” Daniel stated as he stood from his seat.
As they waited for the security officer to arrive, Rebecca walked to her shredder and began destroying the sleazy prints, one by one. Promise blinked back tears, now more furious than blue.
The guard came and stood between them. A few gawkers watched them be ushered to the front door. A walk of shame. She stepped out into the cold air, ready to make her way back to the subway and get her thoughts together before calling Zake, Aria, her brother. Perhaps she’d decide to fall apart with her loved ones and get toasted. As she was making her way up the street, Daniel called out to her.
“Promise.”
“You have some nerve parting your lips to say anything to me. What could you possibly want?!” Her eyes felt icy cold from the mix of fresh tears and chilly air.
He looked so damn pitiful though.
“I am telling the truth,” he said. “You can think I’m a jerk, and sometimes I guess I was, but God as my witness, I’m not that type of man. Yeah, I knew about the movies like I admitted to Rebecca, and that’s why I kept trying to pursue you.” She looked away, disgusted. “I’m a man, okay? You’re a beautiful woman. At the time, you were single. I saw what I saw, and wanted in on the action. You weren’t feelin’ me after
our date and yes, I felt some kind of way about it. I was mad. I took that personally because I’m not used to rejection. I don’t have problems getting just about any woman I want. I’m the total package, so when you ghosted me, it pissed me off.” She rolled her eyes. “I’m just being honest, but I swear on my mother’s grave, Promise, that I did NOT put that shit up there. Whoever did that is evil… and that’s just not me.”
With that admission, he turned and walked away.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
One for the Trevor, Two for the Bass…
It wasn’t difficult to find out what he enjoyed doing in his free time. It wasn’t hard to discover where he worked, either. Social media had a way of helping or hurting everyone, it seemed. Gutter hoped for the latter, in this case.
He cracked the window of his truck as he drove to Holbert Marketing Firm, an advertising company that specialized in digital media and brand design on Hudson Street, in Manhattan. Parking in a nearby parking garage, he entered the establishment, noticing right away the bright yellow walls, slick digital ads on flat screen televisions, and a minimalistic, sleek silver desk area where two receptionists sat working and answering calls.
He approached the desk, but before he could say a word, one of the ladies looked up at him and offered a tilted smile.
“I had no idea we had you as a client, Gutter. This is great! Do you have an appointment? Who is your project manager?”
“Oh, I’m not a client, but I do want to see someone about possibly becoming one. Is there a Trevor Williams here?”
“Yes. Trevor is in a meeting right now. Would you like to have a seat and wait? He should be finished shortly.”
“Sure, thank you.” He was getting ready to walk away, then paused. “Uh, one more thing… can you do me a favor?” He spun back around in her direction.
“Yes, what is it?”
“Don’t tell him who wants to possibly do business with him. Let it be a surprise.”
“Okay, yeah! He’s going to be so excited!” the woman stated giddily.
Gutter sat down in the waiting area, nicely decorated with overstuffed tan leather chairs, a fireplace, and a table with a large floral display, stacked brochures, and a candy bowl. As soon as he sat down, the other woman approached offering hot and cold beverages.
“I’m fine, thank you though.” He waved to her and forced a smile. He waited, hands on the arm rests, getting more tense by the minute. He passed the time checking emails, texting his manager, and speaking briefly with his brother.
At last, the man of the hour came around the corner, sporting a nice light gray suit, white shirt, and designer tie. As he neared, his smile began to slowly fade, and his fast pace turned into a crawl.
“Hey, Trevor!” Gutter shot up from his seat, all smiles. “It’s me! Gutter!”
“…Yeah… I see that. Uh, what can I do for you?”
“I’d like to have a professional chat with you if ya don’t mind.” Gutter winked at him as the two ladies looked on, stars in their eyes. “Do you have a boardroom we can have a discussion in? An office? Hell, a broom closet we can go into if need be? I promise to not take up too much of your time.”
Trevor placed his hand on his hip and looked him up and down, his brows arched and lips twisted. The man had a neatly trimmed goatee, and his hair was faded. Attractive enough, though there was definitely something off about him. Sneaky.
“Yeah. Follow me. We can talk in my office,” the man stated dryly.
“Perfect! Hey, there are a lot of cameras in this place, aren’t there?” Gutter looked up at the corners of the room he’d been sitting in, noting several devices that were recording him. Trevor kept going without responding. He then caught up with the man, walking with him side by side. “I bet you know a lot about cameras, huh? Well, you were the management, so I guess your focus was more on the income and expenses of the ‘talent’, right? Being a big-time advertising guy and all though, I’m sure you understand videography quite well. ’Specially as it seems you’ve done real well for yourself… even lived overseas for a bit. You know the cameras I’m talking about, right?”
Trevor’s jawbone clenched and he kept blinking.
“Keep your voice down,” the bastard ground out.
“I’m not a good whisperer. I’m a singer and a musician. I’m naturally mad loud. Maybe you could teach me how to slide, slither and slip around real quiet like, undetected? I’m sure you’re good at that. Back to the cameras though… Do you know the kind I mean? The kind ya take low budget videos with. Gives a whole, nostalgic, mid-2000s feel. Ya like those, don’t cha? Must’ve felt really nice to cash those checks that you didn’t earn while someone you claimed to love was sellin’ her soul to get through school and keep a roof over your head after you pissed away her money.”
Trevor visibly swallowed, betraying just how nervous he was. Soon, they were inside of the man’s office, which was decked out with awards on display, modern furnishings, and a couple houseplants in need of watering. Gutter went to close the door behind them.
“Uh, no, no! Leave that open.” The man’s voice rose as he pointed to the doorway. “Go on, have a seat.”
Trevor sat down behind his desk, and Gutter took a seat right in front of him. Grinning, he pulled out a pack of gum.
“You want a piece?”
Trevor shook his head.
“All right, suit yourself. This gum is great… Big Red. The flavor stays a while, ya know? It doesn’t disappear quick, kind of like shit that is posted on the internet… even if it was a long ass time ago.”
“Okay, it’s obvious what you’re here about. What do you want, Zake? I am busy. I don’t have time for this.”
“Well, Mr. Pimp, I suggest ya make time.” Gutter unwrapped the gum, shoved it in his mouth, and began to chew. “See, last night, I got some bad news. That bad news might be associated with you.”
“And what bad news is that? Did my wife call off your engagement?” The man sneered.
“Oh no, never that.” Gutter chewed a bit more vigorously. “This isn’t comedy hour. That’s a mighty silly thing to say. Actually, the bad news is that some motherfucker decided to get a hold of the old movies that you-know-who starred in, because of you, of course, and print ’em out. They then taped them to the walls of her place of employment in the early morning as soon as the custodians had opened the doors to clean the place up before the business day began. No customers were there yet, just some employees who were early risers and the cleaning crew, but the lobby was open at that time. Someone put the pictures right there in the front vestibule for everybody to see. Now, isn’t that wild?” Gutter laughed as he slapped his legs.
Trevor’s eyes darkened, and his lips parted.
“Oh my God… did she get fired?”
“Fired? Noooo, her job is secure. But!” He held up his finger. “They have launched an investigation and as we speak, I hired a company to look at the video footage of the funeral home she works at. See, they have cameras, too. Everyone is into videos these days, huh? Just taking photos left and right! Kinda like on social media, where you’ve been liking my future wife’s pictures, sending her flirtatious DMs and other silly crap like that. I let that shit go, but I didn’t really care to see the dick pic you sent her the other day.” The color drained from the man’s face. “Not really my thing. I would’ve probably thrown up actually, if I wasn’t balls deep in her at the time you sent it… having too much fun to let that little shit ruin our night.”
He patted his feet against the floor as if doing a silly dance.
“Anyway, yeah. The video was pretty grainy, so it would take a long time for the police to analyze it, get it over to a professional videographer team and all of that jazz. I wanted to expedite the situation, I’m sure you understand, and being who I am has advantages, so Promise’s boss was gracious enough to let me assist in this matter. One thing though, they were able to rule out one guy pretty quickly. A co-worker of hers, because from what they could
make out, the build of this guy is totally different from the one in the film, and also, there was no evidence that he was even in the building when these were hung up. But, as I look at cha, I can’t rule you out. Isn’t that something?” Gutter smacked the gum, chewing obnoxiously loud.
“I didn’t do any shit like that. Don’t try to pin something like this on me.” The man flopped back in his seat and crossed his arms.
“Do you realize how much trouble you’d be in, just legally speaking, if you did this shit?”
“What is this? A shake down? You’re not a cop. I doubt you’re even supposed to be here, so now that I’ve told you it wasn’t me, I suggest you go on tour, go sing a little jingle, or whatever it is that you do, and get tha fuck outta my office.”
Gutter smirked and stroked his beard, nice and slow.
“No problem, bitch, I mean, Trevor. Before I leave, here’s what you need to know going forward. Just so we have an understanding… If you contact my fiancée again, you’ll be on tour yourself—the six feet under tour of Trevor Williams, and you won’t be returning for an encore. If I confirm it was you who did this shit to her, I will spend whichever amount of money I must to destroy your career to the point that you’ll be beggin’ McDonald’s to take your resume just to clean the toilets. That’s of course after you spend about five years in jail for nonconsensual disclosure of sexually explicit images from out-of-circulation videos, pain and suffering, and a host of other charges. Lastly, I’m the wrong person to fuck with.”
He offered a piercing stare.
“Mothafucka, I’m not scared of you. Don’t let the smooth taste fool you. This suit and tie are on me, but inside I’m still hood. Believe that.”
“Don’t try to grow balls now, ya fuckin’ bum. It’s too late. A real man would’ve never let his woman sell her pussy on camera in the first place. In its place, he would’ve gotten out there and busted his ass so that she was safe and secure. Instead, you tossed her a couple of condoms and bought a fuckin’ car. So, while I appreciate the fake bravado, you and I both know that if you don’t settle the fuck down and get that fake bass out of your voice, there’s gonna be some rockin’ and rollin’ in here… But it won’t be my music. You have no idea the things I am capable of doing.”
