The Darkness (2009)

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The Darkness (2009) Page 15

by Jason - Henry Parker 05 Pinter


  second chances, no third strikes. You are not in kindergarten. If you make your bed, you lay in it, and your first

  offense is a punishable one.”

  “Punishable by what?” Morgan asked.

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  Leonard stopped. Looked at Morgan. “Let’s hope I

  never have to answer that question for you.” Morgan said

  nothing. “If you agree to be a part of our company, you

  will start this Monday. You each came here with a

  sponsor, and that sponsor will call you Friday night with

  the location where you refill and drop off your merchandise and money. Work that starts Saturday morning. Yes,

  Saturday. Your sponsor put their reputation on the line

  bringing you here. Don’t embarrass them. In a short time,

  we will be starting an initiative that has the potential to

  bring in even more revenue than I’ve already discussed.

  But you only get to be a part of it if you start now. So if

  you want to be a part of our organization,” Leonard said,

  “stay seated. If you decide this is not right for you, I’m

  sorry to have wasted your time.”

  Nobody moved. Chubby had forgotten all about his

  cuff links. Nikesh was absently rubbing his back pocket,

  where his wallet was surely kept. Greg looked at the

  table, briefly, considering the offer, then looked right

  back up at Leonard. His eyes said that he was in.

  Morgan did not move. The money seemed too good

  to be true, but he knew Ken Tsang had fallen on hard

  times and had gotten out of it. And if things didn’t work,

  he could always quit. But the opportunity was too good

  to pass up. This was Morgan’s way back in the game.

  Suddenly a chair squeaked. Everyone turned to the

  back of the room to see a short, balding man stand up.

  He waved his hands, as though trying to explain a crime

  he hadn’t committed.

  “I…I’m sorry,” he said. “I can’t do this.”

  Leonard tilted his head, a look on his face like a parent

  who’s been disappointed by a child they’ve put so much

  effort into. “Jeremy, are you sure?” Leonard said.

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  “I—I’m sure. I can’t be a part of this.” He moved to

  the back door, still wringing his hands.

  “You’ve disappointed us,” Leonard said, motioning to

  the rest of the room, still riveted to their seats. “One last

  time, Jeremy. Stay. You heard what I said to everyone

  about our rules.”

  “I know, I…I heard you, but…I’m sorry, but I have

  to go. Good luck, guys,” Jeremy said, and he reached

  for the door.

  “Good luck, and farewell, Jeremy,” Leonard said.

  Then, lightning quick, Leonard reached into his waistband and pulled out a gun. And before Morgan even knew

  what was happening, a crack echoed throughout the

  room, and Jeremy’s head erupted in a spray of fine pink

  mist.

  The dead man’s body slid to the floor, leaving a grotesque red trail from the gaping wound in his skull.

  Morgan recoiled, nearly tipping back in his seat, and

  when he righted himself he shivered when he realized that

  the conference room was dead quiet. The eyes that had

  bugged out of their sockets were now growing accustomed to the violence that had just taken place. The heads

  slowly began to swivel from the body back to Leonard.

  He watched them do this, a look of apathy, a look of

  simple that’s what happens on his face. Morgan recognized

  that face. He knew the emotions. He couldn’t help but smile

  when he realized who it reminded him of. His old boss.

  “There will be no dissent,” Leonard said. “There will

  be no second-guessing, and there will be no turning back.

  Every one of you came here for one reason, and that’s to

  regain some of the respect you had for yourselves. Jeremy

  did not have this self-respect, and now he’s dead. But

  before you start thinking to yourselves that I’m some

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  kind of monster, let me tell you that if Jeremy had stayed,

  like every one of you is going to stay, you will make every

  penny you did at your old jobs. There will be no layoffs,

  no cutbacks, no downsizing. If anything, your earnings

  will grow at a faster rate than they ever could while you

  sat in some wretched cubicle or soulless office. We will

  be introducing a new product in the next few days that

  promises to help you erase all those debts. Keep making

  those mortgage payments. Keep driving that Lexus, keep

  that sweet Russian girlfriend who wants to spend five

  grand a month at Chanel. You’ll have all of that—and

  enough just in case you want to throw a dime on the football games on Sunday. Now, you can either take Jeremy’s

  way out, the coward’s way out, or you can get back to

  work and stay the man you were supposed to be. So,

  men, are you in, or are you worthless?”

  Morgan stood up. He felt a surge of energy through his

  veins, his skin felt like it was on fire. “I’m in,” he said.

  Within seconds, every other man in the room stood up

  and joined him. Leonard’s eyes met each recruit as they

  pledged to be a part of this. Morgan looked at each one

  of them, silently bet himself that he would outearn each

  and every one of them. And he knew from the way their

  eyes met his that they were thinking the exact same thing.

  Morgan Isaacs smiled.

  Let the games begin.

  “No second chances,” Leonard said. “I’ll see the rest

  of you on Monday.”

  21

  Amanda had just settled down on Henry’s couch with a

  glass of Pinot Noir, and the first sip tasted better than

  anything she’d eaten in weeks. She’d skipped dinner, but

  hell, wine had nutrients, didn’t it?

  It had been one of those days that never wanted to end.

  Her feet felt like they’d been trapped inside thimbles and

  she needed something to take the edge off. She’d been

  with a client at the office until nearly eight o’clock, and

  Amanda had come to the pretty secure conclusion that

  humans were not meant to wear high heels for twelve

  straight hours. So by the time she got to his place, weary,

  weak, her dogs barking like nobody’s business, she

  wrenched that cork from the bottle faster than Pamela

  Anderson dropped her drawers around a rock star.

  And while all those excuses were reason enough to

  have a drink—whether or not she continued with the bottle

  depended on several factors—another reason was Henry.

  Things were going well. They’d endured more rocky

  periods in their relationship than the next twenty couples

  combined, and she fully believed they’d come out stronger than ever. She never doubted his love for her. Even

  when that brain of his got in the way, which it often did,

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  she knew it was only because he could be torn between

  the right thing to do and the smart thing to do. It still surprised her how rarely those two choices were one and the

&nbs
p; same.

  Still, she’d learned a long time ago that trying to

  change him was not only impossible, but defeated the

  purpose and would undermine their entire relationship.

  Henry was relentless. That was the bottom line, and God

  did she love him for it. As much as her heart pounded

  during the times where he scared her half to death with

  his latest bit of reckless behavior, it was that full throttle

  stopatnothingishness that made him a great reporter and

  a great partner. Sure he did stupid stuff. He was a guy;

  that was embedded in the DNA.

  For every time he brought home flowers, he would

  leave his underwear hanging from the bedpost. For every

  time he said “I love you,” he would chew with his mouth

  open. But that’s what made them so great. He wasn’t

  fake and didn’t pretend to be perfect. Amanda had met

  plenty of guys who did everything right: held the door

  open for her, pulled her chair out at dinner, chewed with

  their mouth closed. But these men were nothing but

  painters, carpenters, covering up holes in the frame with

  pretty wallpaper or a fresh coat of paint. Eventually the

  hole would reveal the truth, and the facade would crumble. With Henry there was none of that. He wore his holes

  proudly.

  Still, she wondered when they might take the next step.

  Amanda was never one of those girls who dreamed about

  her wedding when she was six. She didn’t name her unborn

  children, or buy Modern Bride magazine. If love came, she

  would deal with it then. For years, love to Amanda was like

  taxes. You only thought about it when you had to.

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  Yet Henry had changed that. Every so often she would

  think about what he would look like in a tuxedo, and

  thought about who would be her maid of honor. She caught

  herself smiling at things she once found cheesy, and more

  than once had felt that terror-and joy-filled moment of anticipation when she thought he might pop the question.

  Yet she didn’t want to rush him. Or rush herself. She

  wasn’t sure if she was ready to commit, and wanted to

  make that decision when the time came.

  Still, it felt nice to think about it. If only once in a while.

  Amanda heard someone jiggling the doorknob. She

  stood up, glass in hand, and watched as Henry entered the

  apartment. His sport jacket was rumpled, slacks dirty

  around the cuffs. There seemed to be some sort of dirt or

  substance, something gray and ashy on his lapels. He saw

  her and smiled, and that was enough to make her smile, too.

  “Hey, hon,” he said, dropping his briefcase on the floor

  and joining her. She felt his arms wrap around her, and

  she hugged him back. “You smell like tannins.”

  She held up the glass of Pinot. “Got started early. That

  kind of day, you know?”

  “Do I know.” He went into the kitchen and took out a

  glass. Not a wine goblet, but a regular drinking glass.

  Then he went over to the dining room table where she’d

  put a stopper in the open bottle. He wrenched out the plug

  and filled his glass up nearly three-quarters of the way.

  Then Amanda watched in both horror and admiration as

  he downed the entire thing in one gulp. But when he

  went back for a refill, that’s when she stepped in and took

  the bottle.

  “Let’s talk first,” she said. “That first glass was enough

  to knock you out.”

  He looked at her, then back at the bottle, debating

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  whether it was worth arguing over. Eventually he nodded

  and went over to the couch, plopping down and emitting

  a deep sigh as he plunged his head into the soft leather.

  “So,” he said, his eyeballs straining to see her from his

  position. “Tell me about your day.”

  “The Morgansterns were in today. They’ve been trying

  to keep custody of their adopted daughter for the past few

  months. The birth mother was a crack addict, and her

  daughter was taken away from her after she left her in an

  alley wrapped in newspaper. Apparently the mother

  managed to clean herself up, get a job, and most importantly marry a man with enough money to make a go at

  challenging for custody. It’s going to be long and it’s

  going to be ugly.”

  “Do you think you can win?” Henry asked.

  “I hope so. The adoptive parents deserve to keep the

  girl. The mother…she might have cleaned up, but there

  are certain people who you know aren’t good parents. I’ve

  met her twice, and neither time did she look me in the eye.

  Her husband does all the talking. She stands there, hands

  folded across her lap, like she’s almost embarrassed.”

  “You think he’s pressuring her to try and get the

  daughter back.”

  “That’s what I think.”

  “Yeah,” Henry said. “You’re gonna win.”

  Amanda smiled. Moved over to Henry, clasped his

  hand, leaned over and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

  “You think so?”

  “I know so.”

  “Thanks, babe,” Amanda said, moving back to talking

  distance. “So how was your day? Any good stories? Jack

  keeping you on your toes?”

  Henry looked at her, and immediately Amanda felt a

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  sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. Her smile disappeared. She’d seen that look before.

  “There was an explosion today, on Park Avenue. An

  apartment…”

  “Some lawyer, right?”

  “That’s right. Brett Kaiser.”

  “I saw that on the news. Terrible. The police are saying

  they think somebody murdered him.”

  Henry looked at her. “I was there.”

  Amanda recoiled slightly. “Wait, what?” she said, incredulous. “What do you mean you were there? Like,

  when the news crews came after the explosion?”

  “I mean I was at the explosion. At Brett Kaiser’s apartment building. Kaiser was tied into the story Jack and I

  have been chasing, and I was at his building trying to get

  some comments from him. When he left me, he went

  upstairs to his apartment, and a minute or two later everything just erupted.”

  “Oh my God,” Amanda said. She held her hands to her

  heart, her mouth hanging open, dry. “Oh my God, Henry,

  are you okay?”

  “I’m fine,” he said. “A little ringing in my ears, but it’s

  going away.”

  “You were…there?” she said. He didn’t say anything.

  Then Amanda wiped at his lapel, her hand coming away

  with gray dust. “Is this…”

  “Christ,” Henry said, jerking up and going into the

  bathroom. She heard the water running, and a few minutes later Henry came back out wearing shorts and a

  T-shirt. Normally she’d make some sort of suggestive

  comment about how he looked in shorts, but her mind

  couldn’t even fathom levity right now. “Sorry about that.

  I didn’t even realize it.”

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  Then Henry actually l
aughed a little bit. Amanda

  wanted to join him, but her mouth wouldn’t work. “Hey,

  baby, you okay?”

  Amanda shook her head. She felt her face grow hot,

  her eyes beginning to water. No, she told herself. She

  refused to cry. This was what their relationship was. This

  was what Henry was.

  She couldn’t protect him. Not right now. Maybe not

  ever. If he’d been closer to the explosion…if Kaiser had

  invited Henry upstairs for an interview…if a chunk of

  brick or concrete had come down at the right angle…he

  wouldn’t be here right now.

  Amanda stood up. She went over to the table, picked

  up the wine and took a swig right from the bottle.

  When she put it back down and wiped her mouth, she

  heard Henry whistle from the couch. “That must have

  felt good.”

  Amanda shook her head. “No. Not really.”

  “I understand,” he said. “I didn’t mean to joke about

  it. I know what you must be thinking. I’m fine. Not hurt

  one bit. They weren’t trying to hurt me. Wrong place at

  the wrong time.”

  “Always seems to be that way,” Amanda said, feeling

  the wine warming her body, her mind going fuzzy. It felt

  good, and she didn’t try to stop it.

  “You know I don’t mean for things like this to happen,”

  Henry said. He walked up behind her, put his arms around

  her waist, leaned in close. She felt her eyes close,

  breathed him in, brought her arms around his and held

  him tight. She felt his breath on her neck, taking her

  away. “I love you, and I also want to be the best at my

  job I can possibly be. I’m not scared of chasing stories

  like this. Maybe I should be, but I’m not. I’ve been

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  through enough the past few years, a lot of it with you,

  to the point where I know this is what I’m meant to do.”

  “I know it is,” Amanda said. “I’m not sure if I wish it

  wasn’t, but I know that’s what you are and what you do.

  And I’m proud of you. I just…you don’t know what it’s

  like to hear the person you love say things like that.”

  “No, I don’t,” he said. “And God willing, I’ll never

  have to.”

  “I hope not either.” She turned around. Kissed him long

  and hard. “So, at least tell me this. Did you get anything?”

  Henry unwrapped his arms from her and went back to

  the couch. He sat down, and she joined him. Henry

 

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