by Lynn Ames
For months, Kyle had refused to name the unidentified woman in a photograph published nationally in which she and the woman were captured locked in a passionate embrace. Then yesterday, Kyle and Parker inexplicably came forward. Questions raised by the Post regarding Parker’s obvious conflict of interest in writing the story about her lover were deflected in a press conference held by the two women in Albany. Attempts to reach Parker and Kyle yesterday failed.
When Jay looked up from reading the paper, the pain in her eyes was evident. Kate moved around behind her chair, wrapping her arms around her tightly and kissing her on the side of the neck.
“Well, it could have been worse, right?” Jay’s attempt to sound flip failed miserably.
“Yes, it sure could have been, baby.”
“Of course, we haven’t seen the tabloids yet. And they’ve got three more days to dig up all kinds of dirt.”
The Cost of Commitment
“Jay, you and I both know that whatever the tabloids print is going to be garbage.”
“Yes, but we also know that people read that stuff, Kate. And they believe it.”
There was nothing to say to that, as Kate and Jay were both too familiar with the truth of that statement.
Kate said, “Let’s cross that bridge when we get to it, honey. There’s nothing we can do about that right now. One day at a time, okay?”
Jay leaned back into her. “Okay.”
Lynn Ames
The Cost of Commitment
CHAPTER NINE
ate and Jay were sitting in their kitchen in Albany on Monday Kmorning, having just come back from the
ir run. The Globe was
out that morning, and they had picked up a copy on their way home. Jay thought, before she started reading, that she had prepared herself for the worst. She was wrong.
“Maverick Lesbian May Bring Down Time Magazine.” The headline alone was enough to make her sick to her stomach.
In what may be the single most damaging scandal ever to hit the venerable magazine, 24-year-old ace reporter Jamison Parker’s stunning revelation of an illicit relationship with 27-year-old flak Katherine Kyle has threatened to destroy the credibility Time has spent decades building.
“That’s a terribly constructed sentence.”
“What?”
Kate leaned over Jay’s shoulder. “That first sentence. It’s too wordy.”
Jay looked up at her lover. “You’re kidding me, right?”
“Hmm?” Kate continued to read.
“They’re tearing me to shreds and you’re interested in their grammar?”
“Sweetheart, the Globe is blowing smoke out its ass. You and I both know it.”
“Yes, but the public at large isn’t as erudite as that.”
“Give them more credit than that, baby. I think most people understand that tabloids take liberties with the truth.”
“Regardless, Kate, this is a nightmare.”
Lynn Ames
“I know, honey.” She kissed Jay on the top of the head and resumed reading.
“This is the most serious ethical lapse I’ve ever witnessed by a reporter at a major news magazine,” said Ernest Wheatogue, professor of journalism and an expert in ethics and the media.
“What Ms. Parker has done—writing a story about someone with whom she was romantically involved—raises questions about every other story the magazine has ever published. Is this the first instance in which a reporter at Time has shown such an appalling lack of ethics? How do we, as the reading public, know? The answer is, we don’t.”
Wheatogue added that the scandal could mushroom, causing the public to lose faith in the information it gets from what has been, to this point, one of the most respected news sources in the world.
This is apparently not the first time Parker has brought a news organization to its knees. As a junior at prestigious Middlebury College in Vermont, Parker wrote a scathing editorial that was so controversial it forced administrators to close down the school newspaper, the Campus, for two weeks. School officials, contacted for this article, refused to comment.
Jay was beside herself. “Bullshit. We shut down the press so that we could make technological upgrades.”
Editors at Time are said to be desperate to salvage the magazine’s reputation. Sources tell the Globe that managing editor Vander Standislau has demanded that every employee sign an oath to adhere to a strict code of ethics. The document was hastily drafted by the magazine’s lawyers over the weekend in the wake of the explosive disclosure of the Parker debacle.
Standislau himself is said to be distraught at the potential destruction of Time’s credibility. Sources tell the Globe that he has been holed up in his penthouse suite, surrounded by loyal editors and reporters, working to come up with a strategy to restore the magazine’s good name.
“In truth,” said Wheatogue, “I’m not sure anything short of firing Parker outright and disavowing any stories she’s written for the magazine will save them.”
Calls to Standislau and several editors at Time were unanswered at press time.
The Cost of Commitment
Jay bowed her head and put her hands over her face.
Kate turned Jay’s chair, knelt down before her, and gathered Jay to her. “Sweetheart, you know that’s not the truth.”
Jay raised her tear-stained face to her lover. “Do I?”
“Yes,” Kate answered vehemently. “You talked to Standislau yesterday, remember?”
Jay sighed heavily, “Yeah, right after I read the editorial in the Sunday Times calling for my head.”
“And what did Standislau say?”
When Jay didn’t immediately answer, Kate filled in the silence. “He told you not to worry, that he had no intention of asking for, or accepting, your resignation. He said it would take a lot more than a few bits of adverse publicity and a couple of negative editorials to change his mind.
Honey,” Kate took her lover’s face in her hands, “this is not a man who will be bullied into doing anything.”
So quietly Kate wasn’t sure she’d heard her at first, Jay said, “Maybe I should resign.”
“What?”
“I’m a liability, and the last thing I want to do is to damage the magazine.”
“Jamison, you are one of the finest writers Time has. You have done nothing but turn out masterpiece after masterpiece. Standislau told you so himself.”
“If I resign, then the whole story goes away.”
“If you resign, Jay, it will lead to speculation that you’ve done something wrong and lend credence to those questioning your work.”
Fresh tears shimmered in Jay’s eyes. “I did do something wrong, Kate. And now I have to pay for that mistake.”
“Honey, you are paying for that mistake. Look at you. You’re eating yourself alive.”
Jay glanced at the kitchen clock. “Kate, you’re going to be late for your Monday-morning briefing.”
“Screw the briefing,” Kate growled.
“No. If you let your job performance slip, then Breathwaite wins and all of this will have been for nothing. You need to be there.”
Kate hated that Jay was right. “Okay, but I need you to promise me that you won’t do anything without talking to me about it first. Deal?”
After a moment’s hesitation Jay said, “Deal.”
“I love you, Jay.” Kate kissed her on her forehead.
“I love you, too, Stretch.”
At the door to the garage Kate turned back. “Don’t let them get you, honey. We’re going to get through this, together.”
Jay simply nodded.
Lynn Ames
The meeting in Vander Standislau’s office had been going on for nearly an hour. Discarded coffee cups littered the small conference table in the corner. Half-eaten pastries were strewn about on paper napkins.
“Sir, I think this is the best course of action. We have to come out strong on this issue.”
The managing editor glare
d at the young man in the slick suit. Jeffrey Ochs was a capable PR man. He worked for Tandor and Wells, one of the top public relations firms in the country.
“Ochs, I’ve been in this business for more years than you’ve been alive. I’ve seen things you can’t even imagine. You are not going to sit there and tell me that my only course of action is to hang a very gifted reporter out to dry in order to stave off a little bit of crappy press.”
“Mr. Standislau, I’m telling you that if we don’t take decisive measures right now, in time for the next news cycle, you’re going to be facing a potentially insurmountable crisis. The papers are already smelling blood and they’re moving in for the kill. If you give them Parker, we can spin it that the magazine does not tolerate even the slightest hint of impropriety. The piranhas will be satisfied feeding on the firing of a reporter who violated Time’s high ethical standards, and the story will go away.”
Trish, sitting off to the side, thought she had never detested anyone more than she did this brash, arrogant spin doctor. To him, Jay’s career was totally expendable, her journalistic integrity just so much chum for the shark-infested waters. The editor stole a glance at her boss. It was clear to her that he was nearing the end of his patience. Trish could see that the other editors around the room sensed the same thing.
“Mr. Ochs,” Standislau said, “if every one of us was thrown to the sharks for making an error in judgment, I daresay there would be precious few of us left. The answer is no. I have no intention of firing Ms. Parker to satisfy the press hounds.”
Ochs started to say something, then seemed to think better of it.
“However,” Standislau raised his voice, “I do agree that we need to take the bull by the horns.” He stroked his chin as he contemplated his options. “Go ahead and book me on the morning shows for tomorrow; then I want you to set up an interview for Ms. Parker with Wanda Nelson for tonight’s America’s Heartbeat.”
“But—”
“Just do it, Mr. Ochs.”
“Yes, sir. Do you want me to contact Parker?”
“Heavens no. I’ll take care of it.”
“But, sir—”
The Cost of Commitment
“This might come as a surprise to you, Mr. Ochs, but I actually know a thing or two about publicity and PR. I’ll prepare Ms. Parker.”
“Yes, sir.”
Trish nearly wanted to laugh; the young man’s need to object was almost palpable, and she enjoyed watching him have to rein himself in.
“So you don’t want me to prepare either one of you?”
“You catch on quickly, Mr. Ochs. Now it seems to me you’ve got a lot of work to do. You’d best get going.”
“Yes, sir.” With a fleeting look around the room, he left.
Standislau turned to his editors. “Can you imagine? Yes, let’s take every one of our fine writers and nail them to the cross for screwing up.
How many reporters would we have left?”
“Vander,” said Ivo Norvika, editor of the international desk, “you do realize the threat to the magazine’s integrity is real?”
The managing editor sighed. “Yes, Ivo, I am well aware of our situation. I am confident that both Time and Ms. Parker can survive this episode intact.”
Terri Van Hotten, the lifestyles editor, piped in, “What do you want us to do?”
“I want you to have conference calls with your reporters—tell them to keep their heads down and not to discuss this matter with their colleagues or speculate aloud. The same goes for all of you.”
There was a chorus of “Yes, sirs.”
“I meant what I said: I am completely convinced that we will emerge from this matter just fine. I expect all of you to convey that confidence to your troops. Let’s get back to work.”
As they started to file out of the room, Standislau said, “Patricia, can you please spare me a moment?”
“Of course, Vander.”
When the rest of the editors had gone, Standislau said, “Sit down, Trish.”
He had never called her by her nickname, and it unnerved her.
“How is Jamison doing? Have you talked to her this morning?”
“Yes, sir. I talked to her shortly before this meeting.”
“And?”
“She’s distraught at the thought that her actions have raised questions about the magazine’s integrity. She wanted us to know that she would do whatever was necessary to protect us.”
“Mm.” Standislau nodded. “I’m not surprised. That woman has a lot of courage, and she’s very loyal.”
“Vander, Jay Parker is one of the finest human beings I know. Not to mention the fact that she’s a fantastic writer.”
Lynn Ames
“You don’t have to convince me, Trish. I’m well aware of her talents.
How did you leave it with her?”
“I told her we were meeting and that we’d be in touch in a few hours.”
“Okay. Call her and tell her we’re sending a car for her.” At her raised eyebrow he added, “It’s time to fight back.”
Trish smiled broadly as she turned to go.
“Oh, and Trish? Tell her to bring Ms. Kyle with her.”
The limousine trip to New York found Kate and Jay reminiscing about the last time they had made a similar journey. It was hard to believe it had only been five and a half months earlier.
As Kate put her arm around Jay in the back seat, they sighed simultaneously.
Jay said, “It’s amazing how much my life has changed since the last time we took this ride.”
Kate smiled. “Mine too.” She looked at her thoughtfully. “Are you sorry, Jay?”
“What?”
“Are you sorry for all the upheaval? As stressful as things have been over the past few months, I worry sometimes that you might regret the choices you’ve made.”
Jay turned more fully on the seat to face Kate, reaching out at the same time to link their hands. “Katherine Ann Kyle,” her voice broke with emotion, “you have made me happier than I ever thought I could be.
My life is so full of love, my heart is bursting. What we have is worth everything that’s happened and more. Don’t you ever doubt that.”
“I wish things could be different, though, Jay. I wish you’d never gotten dragged into this ugliness. I keep trying to think what I could have done to change that.”
“Stop it, Kate. Stop beating yourself up. I’ve had choices to make every step of the way, and I’ve made them. You said it yourself: we’ll get through this together. And you’re right—we will.”
“I know we will, but at what cost, Jay? Your privacy, your journalistic integrity, maybe even your career? It’s too much.”
“Hey.” Jay lifted the hands she held to her lips and kissed the backs of each one. “That’s my decision to make, honey, not yours, remember?
I’ve told you before—the only thing that matters to me is you, and us.
Whatever happens with this scheme, we’ll find a way to turn it around.
As long as I have you by my side, every thing else pales in significance.”
The Cost of Commitment
Kate ran her thumbs over the backs of Jay’s hands. “Have I told you lately how much I love you, and how incredibly lucky I am to have you in my life?”
Jay pretended to think. “Probably. But feel free to tell me again.”
“I love you more than life itself. And I am the luckiest woman alive, Jamison Parker.”
“Good. I like the sound of that.” Jay pressed her lips sweetly to Kate’s, trying to convey the depth of her love in the essence of her kiss.
“Now that we’ve got that settled, can we discuss our strategy for this meeting with Standislau and then tonight’s interview?”
Kate laughed. “Ever the practical one, aren’t you, Scoop?”
“Only when I’m about to be hung out to dry in front of several million people.”
“Don’t worry, love. You don’t really think I’d sit by
and let that happen, do you? Over my dead body.”
“My protector.” Jay laid her head on Kate’s nearby shoulder. “Nope.
I’m counting on you to bail me out if it comes to that.”
“It won’t, honey. Wanda is doing the interview. She likes you—she told you so when you met her on the set last May.”
“That doesn’t count. I wasn’t on the hot seat then. She was too busy interviewing journalist and heroine Katherine Kyle.”
“As I recall, sweetheart, she told you she was quite taken with your work, and that was apart from anything having to do with me. Don’t you remember her saying that she and her husband read your stories and thought they were top-notch?”
“How could I forget? It’s not every day an intelligent, gorgeous movie star turned talk-show host pays you a compliment like that.”
“Exactly. I can’t believe she’d be out for your blood now.”
“Just the same, I don’t want to take any chances.”
“I agree. I’ve put together a mock interview, trying to anticipate the most troublesome questions she could ask. I thought we could do sort of a dry run. That way there won’t be any surprises, and we can refine your answers as we go along. What do you think?”
“I think I love you, Stretch.” Jay kissed Kate again. “Thank you for taking such good care of me. That’s perfect.”
“I just want you to be as comfortable and confident as possible, Jay.
Want to go through this stuff now or wait until after we meet with your boss?”
“Now. I want Standislau to know I’ll do a good job tonight.”
“Jay, if he didn’t think you’d do a great job, he wouldn’t allow you to give an interview, never mind set it up for you proactively the way he did.”
Lynn Ames
“I’d still rather get drilled now, while we have a couple of uninterrupted hours.”
“Okay then, here goes.” Kate pulled a reporter’s notebook out of the briefcase that rested at her feet, scrolling through several pages of questions and notes she had made.
“Wow, you weren’t kidding when you said you’d already given this some thought.”
