by Dark Angel
“Arrest that woman,” Michael croaks.
“Arrest yourself,” I shoot back. From here, he doesn’t look like a billionaire media magnate at all anymore. “I have a story to tell.”
You remember when I had to go real quick the other day? I couldn’t tell you where I was going? Told you to cover for me?
“This committee’s time is valuable, Senator,” the Majority Leader tells me as his position as Chairman of the Ethics Committee. Although in truth, he might as well just hand the gavel over to me or to Michael or even Carter or Liam. He’s lost control of these proceedings and he knows it.
“This won’t take but a moment, Mr. Chairman,” I tell him. I turn around to face the audience. “In fact, we have most of the principle cast of characters in this room.”
I scan the crowd. There! I raise my hand and point to Tina Ling.
“We have Tina Ling, who has made no secret of the fact that she’s representing the city of Shanghai, China,” I say to the audience, no longer talking to the committee. The photographers leave their spot underneath the raised dais of the Committee and go to the sides of the room to snap pictures of me pointing toward Tina. “She’s even told us her affiliation with the Communist Party of the People’s Republic of China,” I finish and pause.
I look around the room. Everyone is hanging on my words. I feel some of the old power coming back.
“What she didn’t tell us is that she’s also a Managing Director of the China First Bank, Mr. Chairman,” I say, whirling around to face the Committee. “And that may be okay. Unlike the United States, we can’t regulate what other jobs public officials have and they are likely going to have different rules.”
Michael looks like he’s going to be sick. I think he’s figured out where I’m going.
“But where it does become a problem, members of the Committee,” I say with a smile. “Is when China First Bank has a majority shareholder that’s a corporation headquartered in the United States.”
This causes ripples of conversation throughout the room. A US corporation working with a Chinese corporation with ties to the Communist Party? If the public ever found out something like this, there would be a backlash.
And I’m about to cause one.
“What we didn’t know, that some will find interesting,” I say, and again relish the pause that I give everyone. “Is that China First Bank is in fact owned through a series of other holding companies by none other than the same holding companies that own Anders Media.”
For a moment there is nothing but silence as people comprehend what’s going on. I decide to get in the last word.
I don't think it’ll be quiet enough to talk for the next few minutes.
“For those of you who don’t get what I’m saying, this whole thing has been orchestrated by none other than that man,” I say pointing a finger toward the dais. “Michael Anders, the billionaire CEO of Anders Media.”
Again, for a second there’s nothing but silence. It’s a lot to take in.
And that’s when the commotion starts. It starts with a whisper. One person looking over their shoulder to the person sitting next to them. Could it be? Looks are exchanged. Glances are given. People are a bit nervous. Is it true?
And then someone whispers something. Maybe ‘I can’t believe it’ or ‘Can you imagine?’
All of a sudden the person sitting next to them chimes in. And then the person next to them has to speak a little louder. And then you hear something from the next row. But the people next to you didn’t. So you repeat it. A bit louder. And then someone hears you. And they repeat it. And you think of something. You say it, all pretense of whispering gone now.
“Order!” The Chairman shouts and bangs his gavel.
But this time, it’s no use.
The audience does quiet down a little bit as the Chairman of the Committee keeps banging his gavel, but Michael speaks up.
“Where’s your proof for these wildly inaccurate accusations, Ms. Hawthorne?” Michael asks. “How do we know this isn’t just some stunt you’re pulling to save your own career from your licentious behavior?”
And I was ready for that. This is actually where I went off to the other day when I got to the city.
“Normally, I’d have no proof, Mayor Anders,” I say and people quiet down. They’re wondering if I just got them riled up as an excuse to stall. “But I got a phone call and went down to meet someone the other day.”
Michael looks up as I turn to the doorway.
A tall, well-dressed young man walks in. He’s 6’ 3”, well-built, and you can see that he knows how to carry himself. People know who he is, and if you were right there, you’d know exactly who he was too.
He walks up to me. Michael is even paler now as the man stops near me, and smiles up at Michael.
“Hi, Dad,” he says.
General commotion in the courtroom abounds again. But he’s not mistaken. That’s Lance Anders standing next to me—the stepson of Michael Anders.
If you’re just coming into this universe for the first time, you’re probably going to need a bit of a catch up.
And it’s perfect timing, because the Chairman bangs his gavel a few more times.
“Senator Hawthorne, we all know the mayor’s playboy son, but what has this got to do with anything?” he asks. I can tell he’s a bit irritated that he isn't following along like some people. But I figure it’ll be good to fill in all the dots anyways.
“You see, Mr. Chairman,” I say as I pull out some papers from my briefcase. “The paper trail that I was able to get my office to pull together after I talked to Lance and got the details about what his father did told most of the story,” I say.
When he keeps looking at me, I continue. “Michael Anders, a billionaire media mogul is also serving the beginning of his second term as the Mayor of New York City,” I say. “But he’s got massively negative disapproval ratings outside the city and it’s clear that once he’s done with his job as mayor – and he only has this one term left because of term limits – his options are limited.”
The Chairman starts to nod. “But there’s a problem. Because of his negative approval ratings, national office is going to be hard. He can’t challenge a senior Senator, but he can sure take on a junior one. And even if that fails, he can discredit the Governor and possibly have an open option there. This was all designed so that Michael Anders would have something to do once the people kicked him out of the mayor’s office.”
People are beginning to put the pieces together. I continue. “Being a woman who enjoyed sex didn’t help. Michael’s stepson, Lance, recently got married to and had a baby with his ex-wife, Jocelyn. The whole country knows. You don’t escape from something like that without raising serious questions. Michael probably views it as Jocelyn’s fault and blames all confident women.”
“I see,” the Chairman says, nodding. “And what about Liam Jeffries and the impeachment in New Kingston?” he asks.
I pull out some more papers. “These documents show that China First Bank received substantial payments from the local Shanghai Communist Party to bring the Boltiador Family factories over to them. They’ve been trying to sabotage this deal to build the factories in America. A discredited mayor who reached out to big business would send shockwaves through the business community. Large corporations would think twice about re-investing in American small towns again for a long, long time.”
There. All the pieces are connected now. It all makes sense.
I have to hand it to Michael Anders. The guy is a diabolical genius.
But he had one fatal flaw. He allowed Lance to continue working in his company as he ran the city. Not realizing that Lance Anders was a decent human being. Sure, he had his bad boy days, but Jocelyn seems to have tamed him. That’s another story, by the way, that has its own HEA. But it’s actually quite Scandalous, and I should probably let you get to it on your own.
I’m telling you all this right now because there is no way I can talk.
Tina Ling is on her feet and I see her try to slink away, heading to the door.
But it’s a good thing that the State Police are here, because they block her. Michael Anders is sitting there, frozen, unmoving.
“Order!” the Majority Leader shouts. “Order!”
After a few more bangs of the gavel, he finally gets a measure of quiet.
“Senator Hawthorne,” the Chairman says, looking at me with apology in his eyes before turning to Liam and Carter. “Mayor Jeffries, Governor Andrews. It’s obvious there is more than meets the eye in this situation. I think it’s time for us to regroup and understand exactly what is going on in light of this new…evidence.”
People are starting to clap and smile. Both Carter and Liam approach me, they’re beaming with grins from ear to ear.
“As such, I’m exercising my authority as Chairman of the Ethics Committee to clear you of any reason to be investigated,” he says forcefully but I’m more focused on the men around me. “I hereby end this hearing and declare no ethics have been compromised at this time!”
He bangs the gavel, but I’ve stopped paying attention. My arms travel to Liam, who is closest to me and he brings me closer. His face finds mine, and our mouths touch. I close my eyes as we kiss, tasting his tongue massage mine.
People are clapping and cheering as I back away and Carter takes me in his arms. We share another kiss and if it wasn’t for the fact that Liam turns to me and says, “We have a surprise for you back at my place,” then I’d have started grabbing their crotches right there. I’m so turned on.
I don’t know how I’m going to control myself to wait till we get back home.
New York Daily Journal
From the Editorial Board of the New York Daily Journal
Dear Readers,
To date, there has never been a time in the storied history of this newspaper that the organization has had to issue a blanket apology to so many people. The Daily Journal has been known until recently for its quality of journalism that created a gold standard to aspire to.
After the events of yesterday during the Ethics Committee investigation, it became obvious that those days have slipped away from this paper.
The New York Daily Journal was purchased by Anders Media in 1995 in a cash sale. There was a clause that was written in that the Editorial Board, at any time of its choosing, could vote to separate the paper from the wider Anders Media empire if the Managing Editors were able to raise the necessary capital.
As the treacherous actions of Michael Anders were exposed yesterday by Senator Vivian Hawthorne, the Managing Editors of the newspaper met for an emergency closed door meeting. All Managing Editors were present with the exception of Michael Anders—for necessary reasons. A vote was taken to separate the paper and each Managing Editor agreed that it was the best course of action.
While not proud of the tactics used by this organization in the last two months, we pledge to the people of New York City and to the nation and world that we will do better.
Already, steps have been taken toward this goal.
A formal notice of separation and payment for independence has been filed with Anders Media. We anticipate that within one month we will be able to spin-off this newspaper into an independent corporation that will never again be able to be biased in its reporting and coverage the way it was during this latest affair.
The issue of protecting the environment while providing economically sustainable jobs cannot be solved by hunting for the latest scandal. It cannot be done by shaming those working in their own way to find a solution. Yet that is what we engaged in, and we apologize profusely.
We wish to announce that Michael Anders is, after a vote by all Managing Editors, no longer affiliated with this news outlet, and is himself now a target of multiple Justice Department investigations that were announced yesterday. He may still be the Mayor of New York, but we believe that his hold over this important source of news is gone. We will nonetheless cover the investigation into his dealings objectively. The District Attorney has announced plans to indict Michael Anders on corruption charges—an indictment that will most likely necessitate that he resign from his position as Mayor.
Tina Ling has been apprehended by the FBI for her role in allegedly attempting to bribe elected officials within the United States of America. Early this morning, China First Bank announced its plan to liquidate itself into it’s parent company and cease to do business in the United States. The People’s Republic of China also weighed in, announcing that Ms. Ling’s membership in the Communist Party had been revoked. How much of this was due to covering themselves from an embarrassing revelation and how much of it is due to individual malfeasance on Ms. Ling’s part will most likely never be known. As of now, Ms. Ling is being held at Rikers Correctional Facility in New York State.
This paper would like to issue a heartfelt apology to Governor Carter Andrews, Mayor Liam Jeffries, and Senator Vivian Hawthorne. The way that they were covered, the levels to which their privacy was invaded, and the assumptions that were made were inexcusable. We can only hope that they forgive us.
At the same time we apologize to them, we would also like to applaud the efforts that they have undertaken to both protect the environment as well as keep the jobs necessary for a healthy economy.
After yesterday’s spectacle, it was a surprise to see the three leaders hold a press conference where they outlined plans that they had finalized with Boltiador Global Industries over the course of the last sixty days. These conditions were agreed to after the Ethics Committee investigations and involve a variety of tax credits to Boltiador Enterprises to bring in low polluting factory jobs to New Kingston.
Those tax credits will be offset with a variety of payments that the Boltiador family will pay to clean up any environmental damage as result of the factories.
The terms were so easily discussed and agreed to that the Boltiador family committed to building yet another two factories specializing in green energy and environmentally friendly upgrading tools to make older factories more energy efficient and less polluting. This additional investment means an extra 4,000 jobs to the local economy.
Already, the celebration for the impending prosperity has hit the residents of New Kingston, who have voted overwhelmingly to drop all impeachment proceedings against their bad boy Governor.
What the Mayor of New Kingston does in his spare time with the Senator and the Governor is of no business of ours. Our investigation concludes at the mention that five new factories are to be built, revitalizing the economy of New Kingston.
We wish all of the wronged parties in this entire episode nothing but our heartfelt apologies. We also wish them luck in the brave new world they have ushered in for us.
Thank you,
The New York Daily Journal Editorial Board
Vivian
I pour the white wine into my glass and take off my heels, feeling the soft carpet under my feet. Walking over to the large windows of our new apartment, I take a sip out of the Chardonnay wine and look at the sprawling city underneath. The sun is setting on the horizon, its orange glow flooding the New York skyline and painting it in mellow tones. Soon enough the night will fall, and true to its soul as the city that never sleeps, the Big Apple will light up like a Christmas tree
New York might just be a city to some, but it’s everything to me. It’s my home, now more than ever. It’s a concrete jungle, yes, one where you have to prove what you’re worth before you get what you want; but it’s my city nonetheless, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. After all, it was New York City that gave me the most important thing in my life: love.
I smile, remembering how it all felt so hopeless before. Liam and Carter were involved in a bitter fight, and I was right in the middle of it, trying to solve the unsolvable and making it even worse every step of the way. But now here I am, standing in a brand new penthouse, bought by us for us.
To be honest, I don’t really care about it. I would be just as happ
y with a tiny house or a one-bedroom apartment, as long as these two were by my side. Sure, I love the view from up here, and I don’t mind the luxuries, but it’s their love that makes it perfect.
Taking another sip from my wine, I let its vanilla and oak taste settle on my tongue, and I close my eyes for a second. Carter and Liam will be home soon, I think to myself, allowing the sweetness of my thoughts to echo inside my mind.
“Home,” I whisper to myself, smiling. It’s still hard to believe, but we’ve built a home for ourselves. Even though we didn’t know how the world would react to what we had between us, we raised our chins and went right ahead. Against all odds, I’m now the happiest woman on Earth.
I open my eyes as I hear a key turning in the lock, and I turn on my heels to face the door. They step inside the apartment together, and I just look at them in silence, that silly smile in my lips. Dreams do come true.
“We’re home, baby,” Carter says, walking up to me and kissing me on the lips, his hands on my waist.
“Are we having a party? I fucking love parties.” Liam laughs, a grin on his face as he picks up the bottle I left on the coffee table.
“Oh, she’s having a party, all right. And she started without us,” Carter chuckles, pulling back from my kiss and looking me in the eyes.
“I was just having a glass,” I tell them, moving toward the center of the living room and setting my glass on the table, next to the bottle. “Although now that you’re here, I don’t need the wine to unwind anymore.”
“You don’t. We can make you unwind pretty easily.” Liam looks at Carter, unspoken agreement flashing in their eyes. They are hiding something from me, and I want to know what it is.
“What?” I ask them, looking from one to the other. “Tell me.”
“Fucking hell, Vivian. When are you going to learn the virtues of patience?” Liam laughs, mocking me as he runs one hand through my hair, a gentle smile on his lips. “We have a… surprise.”
