Keegan112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb3akwbIfm1
“This is a story about love. And about hate.”112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNaU2KyrWoT
Rebecca Wolfe’s lush voice rises and falls as she looks into the camera; it almost sounds like she’s reciting a fairy tale. 112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7QrFldQQUx
But it’s not a fairy tale. She’s talking about real people, real problems. 112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfFZWGWrTzr
“This is a story about ambition and power,” Rebecca goes on, “heroism and heartbreak. It’s about two young lovers—rich college kids—just getting started in life. And about other young people who will never get a chance to live their lives, go to college.112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡasbm5Vr4V9
“Young, brave men barely out of boyhood, men from disadvantaged backgrounds, who will never get married or have a child. Who will never grow old, never look back at all they’ve accomplished.”112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0UAhmMOnY7
She’s really piling it on thick. Blue, standing next to me and holding my hand, flinches at her words.112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKY60Gr48Tf
We’re standing under a cloudy sky on the Oval, the center of campus. We’re just out of view of the camera trained on Rebecca, and we’ve been told to wait until she introduces us and then step into the shot together.112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE0q8aoT3HK
“This is also a story about friendship,” Rebecca intones. “And betrayal. Courage and cowardice. It’s an almost Shakespearean saga. It’s about telling the truth. And about a terrible lie.”112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP9o7zyDulC
Holmlund, standing a few feet away, fidgets at her words.112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXCoHusCjSJ
“Un…fucking…believable,” he says loud enough to be heard by the producer, a woman named Allie, who is standing in front of Rebecca next to a burly, bearded cameraman.112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFlicyKYwmv
Allie turns to glare at Holmlund, and he swells up like one of the scrappy roosters at the ranch.112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFOMFJa8gXZ
“This is not what we agreed to,” he says in a stage whisper, obviously wanting Rebecca to hear him. He slaps his palm against his forehead and walks a tight, angry circle before continuing. “This is absolutely not what we agreed to.” 112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1IirfwCHhe
Allie moves toward Holmlund with her hands out, slowly lowering them as she tries to calm and quiet him. So, naturally, he raises his voice.112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoPyCkq6qa1
“Allie,” he says, “what the hell is this about rich kids and disadvantaged backgrounds? What are you trying to do? Set up some kind of rich versus poor angle?”112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP074nyjEw9
I look back and forth between Holmlund and Rebecca, who goes on speaking into the camera as her eyes shift ever so slightly toward her whispering producer, who is doing her best to contain our lawyer.112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpMvFgap3Qu
“Money has nothing to do with this story, and you know it,” Holmlund goes on. “I was promised an objective interview. And what’s stuff about a terrible lie? That’s editorializing.”112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO6xZUMvAVF
Blue’s eyes are fixed on Rebecca, but I’m not sure he’s really watching her. He has that look he sometimes gets when he is seeing something other than what’s in front of him.112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKWu3h7MPY7
After another moment of Holmlund’s ranting, Rebecca drops her microphone. “Cut! Goddammit, cut.”112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyIvQCYjB4L
She stomps over to Holmlund, her heels sinking into the brown grass. “What is the problem?” she snaps.112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡltJppb4x9U
This close, I realize she’s older than I’d initially thought. Wrinkles brackets her eyes at the temples, and two heavy frown lines between her brows are in full force. 112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu5nGzVfO44
At least she hasn’t botoxed her face into an emotionless mask. As a public figure, the pressure to do that is probably intense. I like her a little better for resisting.112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5nYMVDstht
Until she opens her mouth again.112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7NyuM2D3LA
“I told you up front that I would go where the facts take me in this story,” she says evenly, her gaze flickering over me and Blue before coming back to Holmlund’s contorted face. “And it’s a fact that these two had every possible advantage growing up and that the boys in Mr. Daniels’ unit, the boys who went out looking for him, who went out to save him from his own—”112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQyRsDodJdg
Holmlund and I start protesting at the same time, but Blue silences all of us with his quiet words. 112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ25SNr9nKeV
“That’s right. You’re right. I grew up rich. And Monti, Hud, and Cunny all grew up without much money.”112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ22f5Sk5pr2
All of us just stare at Blue for a moment.112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYandE5qo1g
“But what I did,” he goes on, “and what they did, had nothing to do with money. I enlisted in the Army. I didn’t have to do that. I wanted to. I wanted to serve my country. And those guys didn’t have to go out looking for me. They wanted to find me and bring me back. They were my brothers. They were…”112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnZFi72AOIb
His voice falters, and I loop an arm around him. Then I swing around to face Rebecca. 112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMgtxsb8bFg
“Are you even interested in hearing our story, hearing the truth?” I hiss. “Or are you just looking to sensationalize it, turn me and Blue into some kind of friggin’ media circus? That’s not journalism, that’s just…just… pathetic.”112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwkjCbIsuzH
Brilliant. Insult one of the most powerful journalists in the country, Keegan. Very strategic.112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9Yej2vhZcS
“I think we may have to cancel this interview,” Holmlund piles on, shaking his head and shooting me a look. 112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwuvYivHayI
I guess I’m supposed to leave the verbal jousting to him. 112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ0GA97oyAj
“It’s obvious,” he adds in the portentous tone I already recognize as part of his act, “that my clients are not going to be treated fairly.” 112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmgnI6I1OTd
“From a journalist of your stature, Ms. Wolfe, I expected an objective, open-minded approach. But this, this is the exact opposite of that.”112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhaDqxrJj6j
Again the grave, theatrical shake of his head. 112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNUBqW6lldJ
There’s no way he’s really canceling the interview. He’s just angling for better treatment. 112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvBBpIZhZAq
I can tell from the way Rebecca’s bright-red lips curve into a cynical smile that she’s not buying it either.112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfJ0CM7EsgD
“The stupidest thing you could do at this point,” she says calmly, looking only at me and Blue, “is to walk away. It’s too late to stop this story from getting out there.”112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkLmu2n9XT6
She pauses dramatically, studying her bright red fingernails. 112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP5UpTqckaH
“Whether you go through with the interview or not,” Rebecca goes on, “I’m doing a whole hour on it. Tonight. I’ve got other sources I can put on camera. I’m pretty good at getting people to talk to me.”112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmdZyzJlDUn
I can’t help taking a sharp, audible breath, instantly think about Megz. Would she really break the NDA she signed and risk getting thrown out of OU to appear on TV? Or could it also be people from Fort Sill? Lots of people there now know what Blue did. 112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1myA1NQHzj
It could even be the family members of the men who died. It’s inevitable some of them will give media interviews.112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb2sfZMjfhV
But we were supposed to get our story out there first.112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLdduOEAn4R
Rebecca turns back toward me and Blue. 112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjGH6DyYvNV
“As for Keegan and Blue, I need a decision now on whether they’re continuing with the interview. We’re on a tight schedule here.”112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyU2nNQesur
No one says anything for a long, awkward moment.112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡthYAlBwe57
“This story is going to be big,” Rebecca continues, ramming home her point. “The rich, powerful families involved, the life-and-death drama of it all. The love story. The media and public are going to eat it up.” Her voice has softens just a little.112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6nw3zD72gh
“Your attorney knows this,” she adds, her eyes raking Holmlund. “That’s why he called me. That’s why he desperately wants you to do this interview with me.”112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTnHzHGCexn
Holmlund makes some small, disagreeable sound, but we all know it’s just for show.112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeqWPbM9PWy
“So let’s stop playing games,” Rebecca wraps up, her tone crisp, dismissive. “This is your chance to tell the world your story. After today, it’s not going to be a media circus like Keegan said. It’s going to be a media storm. I don’t think you two really understand what’s about to rain down on you.”112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMMvCUukwCz
I’m a friggin’ journalism major. I’ve followed the news as long as I can remember. Especially in the internet age, I do understand. And it scares the shit out of me. But I don’t want Blue to know that.112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡea1VeZpFGo
And Holmlund is probably right. That media storm may be the only thing that can save Blue.112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkFdERzS6a8
“You need to have the whole story—your side of it—out there from the beginning,” Rebecca says. “And there’s no one who can give you a bigger audience than me.”112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5dJU2wPFiR
It’s like the three of us are frozen. We just stand there. Not even Holmlund says anything. 112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaTa8phHesD
“Still,” Rebecca sighs, turning on her heel, “if you’ve decided to cancel, that’s fine. That’s fine.”112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7jizhEcjuh
“Wait.” Blue tucks my hand into his arm as he says it and pulls me with him toward the camera. “We’ll do it.” 112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvmSct4J9QQ
He takes a deep breath, and then his whole body seems to deflate. “Of course we’re going to do it. I just. . .never mind. Let’s get it over with.”112Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWyguBZ1hJ9
~~~
Thanks for reading Tangled Up in Blue! More coming up soon. What do you think so far? Please like, share and follow this story!
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