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Eventually, the media began to disperse and Liam thanked them before he slipped back through the front doors of the school. She marched up the stairs past the reporters. One of them glanced at her, eyeing her to see if she might have any connection to the story. She suddenly got the feeling that these reporters were like a grown-up version of the high school kids who were always looking to judge everyone at the drop of the slightest word of gossip.
When she got to Liam’s office, she saw that the door was open and that he was alone. When he heard her footsteps, he looked up to see her peering through the door. Their eyes locked for a moment and a thousand memories flooded through Alexis’ head. It seemed like just yesterday that she had a crush on him even though so many years had passed.
“I was just about to call you,” he told her.
“Call me? Why’s that?” she exclaimed.
“Well, I’m sure you have heard the news by now.”
She just glared at him in disbelief.
“So Valentina is on the list then?”
“Yes, she is on it. In fact, she is at the top of it,” he informed her.
“On the top? Liam, this is insane. I thought these lists were something buried in the past.”
“The past? Why would you think that? Just because you were on the slut list 20 years ago?”
She couldn’t believe he had brought that up. Even now, she felt a feeling of dirty shame from hearing her name associated with it.
“Because it’s archaic to shun girls because of their sexual behavior,” Alexis exclaimed.
Liam laughed at her words and shook his head.
“Not at all. In fact, off the record, the school has taken an entirely different view of the whole situation.”
“What do you mean?” she asked him.
Liam stood up and walked over to a row of black file cabinets. He took out a set of keys, inserted it into the bottom cabinet and pulled it open. He removed a thick folder, walked back to his desk and dropped it in front of Alexis.
“That is a collection of slut lists from the last 25 years.”
She looked up at him in astonishment.
“Are you kidding me? So my name is…”
“Yes. On your permanent record.”
“So why don’t you destroy them?” she asked him.
“Because you never know when you might need them again. Once you are on the slut list, you are always on the slut list,” he casually informed her.
Her mouth dropped open. Alexis couldn’t believe what he was insinuating.
“Every year, the slut list comes out. So I’ve learned to embrace the list as just part of the job.”
“Part of the job?”
“Yes, Alexis. It’s just a fact of teenage life. There’s always going to be slutty girls or girls who get called sluts. It’s just part of the high school ritual. So I’ve learned to contain the situation.”
“Contain it? How?”
Liam peered past Alexis to make sure there was no one else listening.
“Well, I sign off on it before it comes out. I make sure that none of the girls on it have parents who are on the school board. I also make sure they have turned 18. Keeps things clean.”
“Keeps things clean? Liam, you can’t be serious? Do you really think you are going to get away with this?”
“Get away with it? The list comes out whether I like it or not. I usually just go through the routine of pretending to be outraged and then give a couple of the girls a week of detention.”
“So what happened this year? Things don’t look too clean with all the media attention.”
Liam shook his head in acknowledgment.
“Yes, I know. Nothing I could do about that. There’s a power struggle at the school board and they want Sara Worthington’s mother off the board.”
“So she’s on the list?”
“Yeap.”
Alexis sat back in her chair, trying to get her mind wrapped around the whole situation.
“And what exactly did my step-daughter do to get on the list?”
“Well, as you know she’s been in trouble before, but last night she made the mistake of being with the wrong guy at the wrong time.”
“What do you mean?”
“Tyler Rothschild. His family is good friends with the Van Slausons. Mrs. Van Slauson called me this morning to complain about Valentina.”
Alexis was furious. She had warned Valentina about getting mixed up with those kinds of people.
“What did she do with him exactly?” she hesitantly asked.
“Not sure, but she was drunk. Apparently, there is a video of the whole thing.”
“A video? Oh my God,” she exclaimed. “Where is it at?”
“Brittney Van Slauson has it. She’ll keep it private so long as Valentina behaves.”
“Behaves?”
“Does what she is told to do,” he clarified. “Accepts her place at the top of the slut list.”
“I want my daughter’s name off the list, Liam.”
“It’s too late. The list has already gone out. In fact, I need you to make sure she does what she is told. She has responsibilities as being the top slut.”
“Liam, there is no way! I’ll go to the police with this.”
“No, you won’t. There’s nothing illegal being done here. It all happens off school grounds. In fact, I’d like you to help.”
“Help? What do you mean?”
“Meet with the other parents. Make sure they understand it is in their best interest to keep quiet about the list. You have the experience to know how to make parents understand.”
“What? Are you serious? How would it be in their best interest?”
“Well, most of them are on scholarship here. Without the scholarships, they would have to drop out.”
Alexis suddenly understood.
“So, you are telling me Valentina will lose her scholarship if she doesn’t comply?”
“Well, I can’t say that formally. You know that. But let’s just say it would be in her best interest to just accept her place on the list.”
Alexis was furious. She couldn’t believe that her step-daughter was being blackmailed like this. Yet, even more than that, she was furious with Valentina for even getting into this position. She knew better than to be getting drunk and being with someone like Tyler Rothschild. She had slaved away for the last three years to pay for her step-daughter to attend an elite school like Ivy Glen. She had already frittered away her own life making bad choices. The last thing she was going to do was to let her step-daughter do the same thing. On top of that, the idea of her own history on the slut list being brought back into the public eye did not sit well with her. She was not going to be the victim this time. She thought about the whole situation and what her options were.
“So, as long as she plays her role on this slut list, she will keep her scholarship here?”
“Well, I can do better than that,” he told her. Liam opened his desk drawer and pulled out a letter. He handed it to Alexis.
“What’s this?”
“It’s an offer for a full scholarship for Valentina for her senior year here. It includes any necessary extracurricular expenses as well.”
She was in disbelief. Liam had obviously thought long and hard about the planning and fallout from this list. He was practically making an offer for her step-daughter to be kept a slut. Her first thought, though, was about the thousands of dollars that she wouldn’t have to spend on tuition. Alexis felt guilty, at first, for thinking such a thought, but times were tough. There was no reason why she should have to make all the sacrifices if all her step-daughter was going to do was turn around and have drunken sex with some preppy rich kid. She was 18 now. It was time for Valentina to realize what adult life was like.
“I’ll talk to her,” Alexis told Liam.
“You’ll talk to her?” he asked her, uncertain of what she meant by that.
“I’ll make sure she does what she is told. And I’ll handle
the other parents. You don’t need to worry, Liam.”
A confident smile bordering on arrogance spread across his face.
“That’s good to hear, Alexis. You understand these girls, and what it’s like to be on the slut lust. I have full confidence in you,” he told her, extending his hand to seal the deal.
“Just give me a pen,” she told him, without shaking his hand. “And another copy of this letter. I want to make sure that this is a done deal.”
“Of course,” he told her, pulling out another copy of the letter for her, and then handing her a sleek fountain pen to sign both copies. “I only want what is best for the future of these young women.”
Alexis penned her signature with a passionate flourish on both copies.
“Yes, I’m sure you do,” she responded sarcastically.
She extended her hand finally and shook to the agreement. Alexis turned to leave when Liam stopped her.
“Oh, more thing. Here’s a list of all the mothers whose daughters are on the list. Along with their phone numbers.”
Alexis suddenly felt like she was privy to the inner circle of this slut conspiracy. She took the list and put it in her purse.
“Let me know if you need anything else, Alexis,” Liam told her with a warm, insinuating smile.
Their eyes connected in a weird acknowledgment. It seemed like they were all in high school once again.
“I will,”she responded hesitantly, unsure really where this was all going to lead. “By the way, how is everything with you and your wife? All good on the home front?”
The expression on Liam’s faced changed and he looked away from her for a moment.
“Actually, my wife and I have been separated for a few months,” he told her.
Alexis had no idea. “Oh, I’m sorry to hear that,” she told him.
He shrugged. “It’s just one of those things. What are you going to do? Life goes on.”
He glanced back up at her and she suddenly didn’t know what to make of the look. She got the feeling that there was more going on in his life than he was letting on. She wondered if he was more involved with this slut list than he was telling.
“Like I said, if there’s anything else you need, please give me a call,” he told her again with the same insinuating look.
She glanced down and then back up at him. He had that same firm gaze that he always had, as if he wanted to let you know that he was in charge.
“I will,” she told him again. She turned and walked out of his office.
_______________
Other Titles from American Taboo Press:
American Taboo - Madison Ava Jones
Actress: Unauthorized Memoirs of a Hollywood Slave - Madison Ava Jones
Natalie Cinderella - Gabriella Luciano
Spanked: Real Stories - Gabriella Luciano
The Slut List - Gabriella Luciano
Women: The Ownership Manual - Logan Alexander