Chapter 2

Jesse did not hesitate to follow, sticking close to Elaine’s heels as she headed through the hallways of the building and to the enormous office where Elaine spent most of her time. The office had an entire wall of window that overlooked the city. The office furniture was white and pristine, with dark red accents, and fresh red flowers brought in every morning.

Elaine led Jesse toward a set of white couches and gestured for her to take a seat. Jesse did so, unable to relax, although Elaine seemed to have no trouble as she crossed her long legs and leaned into the back cushion of the couch.

“Jesse Clarke,” Elaine mused to herself, looking up and down Jesse’s body, seeming to be measuring her up. Jesse felt suddenly very self-conscious, and she worked hard not to shy away from her employer’s roving eyes.

“You’ve been with us for a while now, haven’t you?” the woman asked.

“A little over six months,” Jesse answered promptly.

“How lovely,” Elaine smiled. “And is it everything you had hoped it would be?”

“I like it here very much,” Jesse answered, beginning to feel very uncertain about the direction in which this conversation was going.

“Excellent, and we love having you here,” Elaine said, and Jesse relaxed a bit. “I read your work, along with everyone else’s here, and I truly enjoy it.”

“Thank you.” Jesse incline her head as she accepted the compliment.

“You have a real knack for wit,” Elaine pointed out. “I love it. It gives your writing a flair that most basic tabloid writers never really achieve.”

Jesse merely listened, deciding that it would be easier to just sit back and let Elaine direct the conversation as she saw fit, and then catch up to her.

“Was it always your aspiration to write humor pieces?” Elaine asked her.

Jesse suddenly felt as though she was being backed into a corner. If she said no, it might be interpreted that she did not appreciate her job. If she said yes, then Elaine might think she was perfectly content with her place in the company, and she would not see fit to ever promote her to any higher level of writing.

“I think I’m very good at it,” Jesse answered carefully. “But it was more like something I stumbled upon when I was still trying to get established and really just noticed as a writer. People seemed to respond well to it, and I just stuck with it.”

“Interesting,” Elaine said thoughtfully. Jesse felt herself grow more nervous each passing second.

“You must know that this life isn’t cut out for everyone,” Elaine mused, looking down at her manicured nails. “It takes a level of grit and tenacity that most people just don’t have.”

Jesse could not decide if Elaine was praising her or insulting her, and her stomach began to knot with anxiety.

“You have made it this far, and that speaks a lot of you already,” Elaine said, her tone approving. “But I’m more curious to see where you’ll go from here.”

Jesse remained silent, still unsure of how to respond.

“I guess what I’m saying with all this,” Elaine said with a sigh, “is that I have uncovered a very interesting topic, but I’m not very interested in it myself. However, I think it would make a very good story with some investigation. Though I must say I am the only one I fully trust to handle an investigation like this. But, as I already said, I am not the least bit interested.”

Jesse felt her interest increase. Was Elaine offering her a story?

“I actually thought of you from the moment I found out about this little mystery,” Elaine said. “I don’t know why, but I always pegged you for someone who was more of a player than they let on. There’s more to you than sarcasm and wit. I’ve read some of your other published works. You have a very intuitive side and a knack for subtle interrogation.”

Jesse felt flattered, and she blinked in surprise to think that Elaine had ever even seen her work outside the magazine, much less read it.

“But,” Elaine sighed. “I figured I should at least ask you if that was something you were even halfway interested in. I know a lot of people aren’t interested in real journalism. A lot of your coworkers would not hesitate to turn this down.”

Jesse felt a brief moment of doubt and apprehension, but she felt it fade away in an instant. She suddenly found herself wanting this assignment without even knowing what it was over.

“Should I let you in on my little project?” Elaine asked, her voice nearly teasing.

“I’m very interested to know what it is,” Jesse admitted, and Elaine bared her teeth in a wolfish smile.

“If I tell you,” Elaine said, her tone warning. “I’ll take that as a commitment.”

Jesse experienced a further moment of apprehension. She knew that she wanted to be taken more seriously as a journalist and that this story from Elaine would likely be her chance. She knew that if she turned Elaine down, she would likely not get another chance like this for a long time, if ever. Elaine looked at her expectantly, and Jesse knew her answer.

“Then yes,” Jesse said, a feeling of finality overcoming her.

“Excellent!” Elaine clapped her hands together and stood, moving over to her desk. Jesse hastily stood and followed.

“Have a seat,” Elaine gestured to one of two white chairs in front of her desk, and Jesse sat as Elaine slipped into her own large chair behind it.

“Are you familiar with an actor by the name of Hal Roberts?” Elaine asked.

Jesse frowned at the question. Of course, she was familiar with Hal Roberts. Roberts was an incredibly famous movie star, known for his roles in action and drama movies. He was the very definition of tall, dark and handsome. He was often featured in their magazine, as well as many others across the country.

“I am,” Jesse answered shortly.

“Cute, right?” Elaine flicked her eyebrows up. “If I were just a little younger and about half as busy, I would follow him to the ends of the earth.”

Jesse offered her employer a polite smile.

“Anyway,” Elaine said with a wave of her hand. “As you, and everyone else around here knows, he had a pretty big movie come out recently.”

It was true. Roberts had decided to begin his directing career to add to his already flourishing life as an actor when he opted to produce a film by the name of ‘Yes’. The film documented the life and trials of a man with severe anxiety, and it was supposed to highlight the difficulties of living life with any kind of emotional health disorder. Critics were calling it a revolutionary movie.

Roberts had spared no expense on the film. He called in the best of the best to collaborate on it musically, visually, and in every other aspect as well. The advertising campaign had also been phenomenal, and by the time it premiered in theaters, so much interest had gathered that it became an instant box office hit. The numbers were still climbing and climbing, and it was speculated that soon, it would become one of the highest-grossing films of all time.

People had been astounded by the artistry and the deep meaning of the film. Roberts had also shown a side of himself in his acting that people had never seen before. He had worked intensively on the movie for almost six years. Throughout the movie, he gradually lost weight to the point that he looked ill, all for the aesthetic of the film. He deprived himself of sleep to look bedraggled and worn, and it was rumored that at times, he was incapable of filming due to his weakened state.

In the end, though, it seemed that all his efforts had been worth it. His film was popular with the masses and the media, as well as with the critics. He had made film history, in addition to millions of dollars. If he wasn’t rich and wildly successful before, he certainly was now. Jesse wondered why Elaine was bringing it up.

“As you know,” Elaine continued. “Hal would not take any questions about the movie before it came out, and somehow he kept all of his team on lock as well. It made for a great surprise when the movie came out, and that’s fine. But now, the public is hungry for answers to all their questions.”

“You’re right,” Jesse said. “But hasn’t he been refusing interviews even now?”

“He has,” Elaine nodded, but her eyes glinted as she smiled. “But that’s where you come into the picture.”

Jesse frowned, somewhat confused.

“You see,” Elaine purred. “I am a woman with all manner of connections, and one of those said connections has her own connections, one of them being Hal Roberts’ personal assistant.”

Jess couldn’t help being impressed by the connections that Elaine had. Then again, she was well established as a member of the press, so Jesse was hardly surprised.

“Through this lovely chain of information,” Elaine continued, “it has come to my knowledge that Hal Roberts is going to grant interviews to a select group of magazines, and ours is on that blessed list.”

Jesse’s ears perked up a little at that news.

“As you can probably already guess,” Elaine went on, “this interview could really go over well for our magazine.”

Jesse couldn’t help agreeing, and she nodded. The Edge interviewed all manner of celebrities all the time. But it was rare for a celebrity to keep quiet on a popular topic for so long, and to be included in the limited number of magazines that would get to interview him was very exciting.

“My first notion was to handle it myself,” Elaine explained. “But, I’m just so horribly busy. And frankly, I’m not interested in his inspiration for the film, or whatever it is the public wants to hear. So, as usual, I decided to pass it off to one of my lovely employees.”

“I’m very flattered,” Jesse said honestly.

“Well, we’ll see how it goes and then we’ll see where you go.” Elaine smiled. “Anyway, I’ll send you an email with the times and dates. Oh, and have you watched the movie?”

“I haven’t,” Jesse admitted, her expression apologetic.

“Well, you probably ought to do that,” Elaine said frankly. “Here, I got a bootleg for you, just in case.”

Elaine reached into one of her drawers, withdrew a disk in a sleeve, and slid it across the desk toward Jesse. Jesse immediately took it up and put it into her bag so she didn’t forget or lose it.

“Watch it tonight, and come up with a list of questions, then email them to me,” Elaine instructed. “I’ll look over your list and possibly add a few questions of my own, and then we’ll see where we need to go from there. That’s all.”

Jesse stood immediately and put the strap of her bag over her shoulder. “Thank you,” she said, her mind already whirling from the magnitude of the assignment she had just been given.

Elaine merely granted her a smile and looked back down at her desk. Jesse took that as her cue to leave.

Upon leaving Elaine’s office, Jesse headed across the building to Mark’s office. The day was nearly out, and there was no chance of getting anything more done when she had this exciting news to tell her best friend. She moved through the large building on auto-pilot, vaguely acknowledging her coworkers as she passed them by.