Keegan126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZhj3GNfrPx
“This is a story about love. And about hate.”126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKlLlB7m47F
Rebecca Wolfe’s lush voice rises and falls as she looks into the camera; it almost sounds like she’s reciting a fairy tale. 126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3GXP7LXLSO
But it’s not a fairy tale. She’s talking about real people, real problems. 126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTnxfI9dPx2
“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.126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnCVH3wkjsF
“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.”126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyqPWr4c3xe
She’s really piling it on thick. Blue, standing next to me and holding my hand, flinches at her words.126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXgrHd5HDD9
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.126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAQ0cNaOBSW
“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.”126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFo59kV1e4g
Holmlund, standing a few feet away, fidgets at her words.126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbNcYsl1aJz
“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.126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIr1OpGMI8l
Allie turns to glare at Holmlund, and he swells up like one of the scrappy roosters at the ranch.126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtmdj2qWUXx
“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.” 126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhpeS1AcxQZ
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.126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡogzwv0TFen
“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?”126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC6nvTIieeS
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.126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1lZAygSGS1
“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.”126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOhHkeXv1q3
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.126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9y2d58MqSa
After another moment of Holmlund’s ranting, Rebecca drops her microphone. “Cut! Goddammit, cut.”126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHXverc2H00
She stomps over to Holmlund, her heels sinking into the brown grass. “What is the problem?” she snaps.126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn4tAL0OQnp
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. 126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRNDGWLWlNW
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.126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB5CQootNiZ
Until she opens her mouth again.126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3RCxhRJvxJ
“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—”126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJvUoaUCbaW
Holmlund and I start protesting at the same time, but Blue silences all of us with his quiet words. 126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVMmlJTpyWX
“That’s right. You’re right. I grew up rich. And Monti, Hud, and Cunny all grew up without much money.”126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2QDt7cZBHb
All of us just stare at Blue for a moment.126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfF6UmVPvJd
“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…”126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtc8TnqvWXl
His voice falters, and I loop an arm around him. Then I swing around to face Rebecca. 126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO3KCQ8c2RZ
“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.”126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPnISWtE1H8
Brilliant. Insult one of the most powerful journalists in the country, Keegan. Very strategic.126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2leHjDnTYX
“I think we may have to cancel this interview,” Holmlund piles on, shaking his head and shooting me a look. 126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRIsLC9MS1J
I guess I’m supposed to leave the verbal jousting to him. 126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwOtoEUtbAu
“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.” 126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH8O6A64iGq
“From a journalist of your stature, Ms. Wolfe, I expected an objective, open-minded approach. But this, this is the exact opposite of that.”126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFrerlT5hB1
Again the grave, theatrical shake of his head. 126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcbXWXiUhZu
There’s no way he’s really canceling the interview. He’s just angling for better treatment. 126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8qkAgd5XYT
I can tell from the way Rebecca’s bright-red lips curve into a cynical smile that she’s not buying it either.126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnbM6JT2sjX
“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.”126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYsVBXjW4c8
She pauses dramatically, studying her bright red fingernails. 126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgIvtkjL8i4
“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.”126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ72WKXRa4wx
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. 126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqO639cokgq
It could even be the family members of the men who died. It’s inevitable some of them will give media interviews.126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYJiieiCBpe
But we were supposed to get our story out there first.126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy4zjyDKuzM
Rebecca turns back toward me and Blue. 126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9ZZt1YmsDP
“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.”126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxDjCaRCT75
No one says anything for a long, awkward moment.126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW7ShDZYuTh
“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.126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT6GnpssHoY
“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.”126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGGjI94sOA0
Holmlund makes some small, disagreeable sound, but we all know it’s just for show.126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3JobXgJW15
“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.”126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXUVteeFnrn
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.126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyoLCECDEQs
And Holmlund is probably right. That media storm may be the only thing that can save Blue.126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDpWhEu2nDy
“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.”126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYBdHWC3hiC
It’s like the three of us are frozen. We just stand there. Not even Holmlund says anything. 126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm92NuMvl0O
“Still,” Rebecca sighs, turning on her heel, “if you’ve decided to cancel, that’s fine. That’s fine.”126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjAJgRuMLV2
“Wait.” Blue tucks my hand into his arm as he says it and pulls me with him toward the camera. “We’ll do it.” 126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGxetKQqlSc
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.”126Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi7GbiK4t5U
~~~
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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