by Raven Snow
“What are they talking about?” Tiffany asked, speaking over Rose. “What did you do?”
“They didn’t do anything,” Norman assured her. “This is just Channel 2 trying to make themselves look good.”
“Did you know about Beatrice?” Rowen asked Rose, trying to drag her attention back to that.
“This is the first I’m hearing of it.” Rose picked her phone up and headed for her office. “I’m going to give Ben a call. I’ll be right back.”
Willow stood, a scowl on her face. “I should go up there and give them a piece of my mind.”
“Did Benji know about this?” Peony asked her sister. Her face reddened slightly as she seemed to remember that she wasn’t talking to her lately.
Willow went still. “That’s a good question.” She pulled out her own phone and headed for the door. “I’m gonna give him a call.” She slipped outside for some privacy.
Peony stood there looking awkward for a couple of beats then hurried to the door as well. “I’m gonna go check on her.” Rowen watched her go. Maybe their relationship would have mended itself without her intervention after all.
“I’ll just… switch this off.” Norman took the remote from where Rose had set it down.
“Shouldn’t we keep watching it?” Rowen asked with a sigh. “See what they say?”
“You get the gist. They’re trying to make you look bad, themselves look good, blah, blah, blah.” Norman turned the television off. “It’s just stressing everyone out. We don’t need that. It won’t help anyone.”
“What do we need then?” Rowen sank back down into her desk chair. Why hadn’t Grammy seen this one coming?
“What we need is damage control.” Margo looked at Norman. He nodded in agreement.
“And how do we go about that?”
“Well, first things first, we need to release a statement. We need to make sure that our journalistic standards are out there for everyone to see.” Margo went to her old desk and sat down there. She’d brought her old work laptop in a couple of days ago. She switched that on now.
“That won’t matter. To anyone. This town hates us.”
“Oh, Sweetie,” Tiffany said with a frown. “They don’t all hate us.”
“Lainswich mostly hates Greensmiths,” Norman agreed.
Tiffany rocked back on her heels, looking annoyed. “Well, hate is a strong word.”
“They intensely dislike and distrust us then. They are inclined to give literally anyone else the benefit of the doubt.” Norman went around behind his daughter to get a better look at what she was doing on her computer.
“It doesn’t matter if they believe the statement,” Margo explained. “It just matters that we put it out there for appearances. It’s going to look even worse to people if we don’t. Besides, that’s not all we have to do.”
Of course it wasn’t. “What else do we have to do?” Rowen asked, wishing she could just go next door and see her husband. She could use a comforting hug right about now. He was pretty good at those.
“We need to see if we can get an interview with Channel 2.” Margo said that like it was no big deal.
“Seriously?” Rowen gave her a look she hoped communicated that she was fairly certain her cousin had lost her mind. “And why would we do that?”
“Because they have a bigger audience than us.” Margo looked up from her computer screen and gave her a stern look. “This isn’t just about saving the paper’s reputation. This probably won’t hurt much, if I’m being honest. Any press is good press. That’s less true on a personal level, though. Our reputations are on the line, and you… I mean we live here. I don’t know about you, but I want to at least try and not be an easy target for their hate. Going in for an interview can only help… As long as we don’t like, you know, send Willow or Peony or something.”
Rowen considered what she was saying. A reputation like theirs was hard to damage, especially in times like these. “I guess I can give her a call.” Rowen wasn’t sure Julia Martinez would even agree to an interview. “What are you doing now?”
“Closing down the comment section of the site so we don’t have to do a ridiculous amount of damage control.”
Rowen grimaced. “I hate to do that. Always feels like we’re going against free speech or something.”
“They’re welcome to free speech. We’re entitled not to be a platform for it if it’s predominantly hateful. Which it will be. You know this town as well as I do.”
That was certainly true. Rowen remembered all too clearly trying to moderate the comments on the site the last time the town’s ire had been pointed in their direction. It was a losing battle. She looked up when Rose came back into the office. She looked a little calmer after talking to Ben. They suited each other. They were both very level-headed people.
“Okay,” Rose began, taking a deep breath. “So, yeah, apparently, Beatrice McCarty was found early this morning and taken to the hospital. She didn’t make it.”
“Did they say why?” Rowen asked. The news hurt her. She knew Beatrice had been upset by what had happened. It was terrible that her life hadn’t had a chance to improve before she passed away.
“Heart troubles was what Ben said. He didn’t really elaborate, though it seems she had some sort of pre-existing condition.”
“This probably didn’t help that any. I don’t think we were part of the problem, but still.”
“Yeah, well, it sounds like she was surrounded by friends from the church when she went. At least there’s that, I guess.” Rose finally noticed that Margo was on the blog’s website. “What are you doing?”
“Damage control.” Margo said that like it wasn’t anything for her to worry about. “Speaking of, we should probably send our respects. Showing up ourselves might be inappropriate given what Channel 2 just said, but we should at least send flowers or something.”
Rose nodded. “I agree.”
“And someone should write something on the site about all of this. I mean, not me or anything, but one of us needs to put up an article about our last encounter with her and how sorry we are that this happened, that we have journalistic integrity. You know, that sort of thing.”
Rose raised her eyebrows, evidently surprised to hear this sort of planning from Margo. “I agree. That’s a good idea. I’ll get started on something like that. Geez, this is such a mess.”
Margo waved a hand like it was no big deal. “We’ve dealt with worse.” That seemed to be the Greensmith family’s lot in life.
Chapter Fourteen
Julia Martinez wasn’t taking their calls. Rowen had left five messages now. Well, the first two messages were actual messages. The subsequent three were just passive aggressive complaining. She knew she was ignoring her on purpose. She had to be.
“You need to go down there,” said Willow, who had been voting that they march on the station and burn it down all day.
Rowen had talked her down from that twice. Now she was beginning to agree with her. They had put out an article and ordered flowers to be sent to the church where Beatrice’s memorial service was to be held soon. Of course, that hadn’t stopped the hate mail. Rowen hadn’t checked her e-mail yet. Rose advised against it. “Stephanie Nielson coming up in the news again riles them up. It makes them want to be angry about something, and we’re an easy target. Especially right now.”
Rowen was tired of waiting around “Okay, fine,” she told Willow. “I’m going down there.”
“Seriously?” Willow grabbed for her purse and started to stand from her desk.
“You’re not going,” Rowen said quickly. Taking Willow along was way too risky. She was bound to lose her temper.
“What? Seriously?” Willow looked around the room as if everyone else would chime in on what a ridiculous idea this was.
“You are short-tempered,” Rose chimed in, not even looking up from the screen of her laptop.
“Seriously?” Willow crossed her arms over her chest and sank back in her chair.<
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Peony looked up from her own computer screen. She hesitated but chimed in. “You’ve gotta take her.”
Rowen was surprised to hear Peony defending her sister again. Well, maybe surprised was a strong word. Them making up was inevitable after all. Still, she was happy to see it in action. She had been heading for the door but paused to listen to what she had to say.
“What if you can’t get in?” Peony asked, her eyes darting from Rowen to her sister then back again. “Willow has connections in there. She can get you in.”
Willow nodded. “Oooh, she’s right. I can totally get Benji to let us in.”
Rowen sighed. She hadn’t been able to get Julia on the phone all day. She wasn’t sure why she thought showing up would be any different. With her luck, she’d just be left to wait around in the reception area until closing. “Fine,” she relented. “But it’s just me going in to talk to Julia.”
“Fine.” It was hard to tell whether Willow would actually stay out of the way or not. “But Peony gets to come too.” She glanced over at her sister. “I mean, if she wants to go.”
Peony shrugged, but there was a smile on her face for being included. “Yeah, sure. I wouldn’t mind going.”
“Okay, okay. I’ll drive. Just hurry it up and get in the car.” Rowen motioned them on ahead of her. “Let Benji know that we’re on our way.”
“Will do.” Willow smiled at her sister and the two of them promptly disappeared out the front door.
“Be careful,” Margo warned. She had been surprisingly invaluable during all of this. As it turned out, she had a real knack for damage control. She said she got the hang of it while on the road with David. She wouldn’t expand on that statement, but Rowen got the idea. She knew David could be a bit of a party animal. “Try to keep things civil. I know she’s a pain, but don’t let her know that she got to you.”
“You want to come with us?” Rowen already had a full party headed to the Channel 2 building, but one more probably couldn’t hurt.
“I don’t think I would be much help. You seem to have things under control. Besides, I’m busy here.”
Rose rolled her eyes. “I saw her texting David. She wants to go out to lunch with him. Otherwise, she would probably go with you now.”
Margo glared at her cousin for tattling on her. “Okay, but seriously, you can handle this on your own.”
Rowen hoped she was right. “I’ll give you a call if I run into any trouble.” She headed for the car.
Benji met them in the employee parking lot out back. He looked awfully tired, like he hadn’t been getting a whole lot of sleep lately. There were dark circles under his eyes and he seemed constantly distracted. This job paired with his relationship was definitely taking a toll on him. He was probably getting a lot of pressure from both sides.
“Hey,” said Benji, going in for a hug with Willow.
Willow shied away. “Nope.” She put her hands on her hips. “I’m still mad you didn’t give us the heads up about that little exposé.”
Benji heaved a sigh like this wasn’t the first time he was hearing this from her. “What was I supposed to do? Go behind her back and tell you?”
“Yes!” Willow looked at Peony and Rowen for support.
Rowen hated to let her cousin down, but she could see where Benji was coming from. “I know you were just trying to do your job. I get it. We all have to at least try to keep our business and private lives separate.”
“But maybe you should find a different business life,” Peony added, glancing away sheepishly.
Rowen inclined her head. “Yeah, maybe what she said.” It really didn’t seem like Benji had the stomach for this kind of work. “Thanks for letting us in, though. I really appreciate this.”
Benji shrugged as if to ask what choice he had in the matter. “If anyone asks, you forced your way in and were very sneaky about it.”
“I’m not sure anyone is going to believe that, Sweetheart,” Willow said, gently. Even if she was angry at Benji, at least she was being honest with him about the risks he was taking. That meant a lot coming from someone as manipulative as she was.
“Yeah, well, what can I do?” Benji spread his hands. “Say no?”
“Yes,” Rowen said, flatly. “You can say no.”
“Just get inside.” Benji headed for the door and used his keycard to let them in.
The halls were much like Rowen remembered them. Back when Willow and Benji had first started dating, Benji had helped them slip in here a lot. He had been invaluable in helping them solve a crime. It wasn’t quite as urgent this time, which made Rowen appreciate it even more. “Do you know where she’s at?”
Benji frowned, probably not eager to help any more than he already had. “I think she’s doing an interview on Stage 1. That’s down the hall and to your left. There’s a big door and signs. You can’t miss it. Don’t just barge in there or anything if she’s on air.”
“Oh!” Willow’s eyes lit up at that idea. “Let’s do that! Let’s all go!”
“Shh,” Benji hissed, glaring at his girlfriend. “Keep your voice down… and please don’t.”
Willow pouted a bit but nodded. “Fine, fine. I’m sorry. Come on, let’s go-” She seemed to remember Peony was there. “Look at movie times for later, maybe? Get your mind off all this. Peony, want to go watch a movie later?”
Peony smiled. “That sounds good.”
Even Benji cracked a smile. “That might be nice.”
“You okay with him coming, Peony?” Willow wore a completely straight face as she asked. Even Rowen couldn’t tell if she was kidding or not.
Peony threw an apologetic look in Benji’s direction. He was crestfallen. “Of course he can come! I like Benji.”
Benji let out a big sigh. “Good,” he said, relieved. “I mean, I like you too, Peony.”
“That settles it then.” Willow looked at Rowen. “You go do your thing. We’re gonna check movie times. Godspeed and all that.”
Rowen headed in the direction Benji had pointed her in. He was right. There were signs. She tried her best to hurry. Every time someone passed her in the hallways she got nervous they would notice she didn’t have a visitor’s tag on. Fortunately, no one really seemed to care. Everyone was stuck in their own little world, hurrying along hallways, looking down at their phones or talking to one another. Rowen was thankful to be ignored.
The first thing Rowen saw as she approached the sound stage was the glowing “ON AIR” sign. Its letters were all lit up red. Darn it. She didn’t want to wait out here where she could be seen. That led to the second thing Rowen noticed, precisely who she would be waiting with. She was shocked to see the Landis family sitting on a leather sofa against the wall. Trevor and Terrance were both playing on their phones. Tommy was looking into the distance. He clearly had a lot on his mind.
“Mr. Landis?” Rowen couldn’t help it. She was so surprised to see him there. This was the last place she had imagined finding him. “What are you doing here?”
Tommy jumped. He looked up. When his eyes settled on Rowen, his face turned a bit red. He and his sons were all wearing dress shirts and khakis. It looked like they were ready for an interview. Tommy collected himself and sat up a little straighter. “Rowen Greensmith, right?”
“That’s right.” She moved to stand in front of the sofa and repeated herself. “What are you doing here?”
Tommy glanced away like he was ashamed. He must have thought better of it. He squared up his shoulders and looked at her. “We’re here for an interview.”
Terrance and Trevor had both put down their phones. They exchanged uncertain looks. Neither seemed very comfortable with his answer or even being here at all. Rowen still couldn’t wrap her head around their being there. “May I ask why?”
“I can’t deal with all this attention. I can’t do it again.” Tommy sounded tired, very tired. “Last time, it killed business. I still haven’t spoken to my extended family since then. I can’t do this anymore. I’m
just gonna do it. I’m going to sit down for an interview with Julia Martinez and lay it all out there. It’s easier than having Channel 2 camp out on my doorstep.”
Rowen didn’t like anything about this. “I’m sorry it came to this.” She couldn’t blame him, and she wasn’t going to try to talk him out of it. That wasn’t her place. She was wondering one thing, though. “Does Jessica know about this?”
“No,” snapped Trevor. He glared at his father. “She doesn’t.”
Rowen was almost sorry she had brought it up. Apparently this was a sensitive subject that had already been brought up multiple times. The way Tommy frowned at his son seemed to imply he didn't want to talk about it. “Son,” he said, his voice deep and warning.
That didn’t make Trevor back down. If anything, it just seemed to make him angrier. “It’s not okay. You should have talked to her about this first.”
“Son, this isn’t the time.” Tommy was still using that commanding voice Rowen heard parents use sometimes. “We’ll talk about this when we get back home.”
“What? After the interview?” Trevor shrugged off the hand his brother put on his shoulder. “That’s really convenient. We’ll just tell Mom we went behind her back after the fact. I don’t want to go on television and bad mouth Mom.”
“No one is asking you to bad mouth your mother.”
“You keep saying that, but you know they will!” Trevor was shouting now. Rowen wouldn’t be surprised if they could hear him on the sound stage already. “They’re going to twist our words around! That’s what they always do! Mom didn’t even do anything wrong!”
Rowen winced. She hadn’t meant for this to get so out of hand. She was trying to think of something to say when the doors to the sound stage burst open. A young man with an ear piece hurried out, looking anxious. He looked at the Landis family and put a finger to his lips. “Please try to keep it down out here.”
Tommy’s face was red again. He frowned at his sons and turned to the staff member with an apologetic expression. “I’m sorry about that. Lotsa emotions running high. We’ll keep it down.”
