Keegan132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLd8Oe86E7r
“This is a story about love. And about hate.”132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9uyJ8Hyswr
Rebecca Wolfe’s lush voice rises and falls as she looks into the camera; it almost sounds like she’s reciting a fairy tale. 132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc1B55VWPXM
But it’s not a fairy tale. She’s talking about real people, real problems. 132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbI1V4L6kyx
“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.132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmb8SVcIvZh
“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.”132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvBXB0uq7Sj
She’s really piling it on thick. Blue, standing next to me and holding my hand, flinches at her words.132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlTvw4GHVv3
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.132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCNJlF689BV
“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.”132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqkVBpQutsx
Holmlund, standing a few feet away, fidgets at her words.132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw7zkhXxgee
“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.132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRYOymFt56d
Allie turns to glare at Holmlund, and he swells up like one of the scrappy roosters at the ranch.132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgbE5CzcBoP
“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.” 132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhUHK4aFtm2
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.132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVgUsYgiyky
“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?”132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyuhiSeH9Qa
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.132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8jaRPRZr1O
“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.”132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡADBZMxgzCs
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.132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1zF3b9GR2G
After another moment of Holmlund’s ranting, Rebecca drops her microphone. “Cut! Goddammit, cut.”132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwSXTLDWDjO
She stomps over to Holmlund, her heels sinking into the brown grass. “What is the problem?” she snaps.132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjEgy66t9d5
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. 132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRevlQZdbYD
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.132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMvyV6gq0Ca
Until she opens her mouth again.132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ69VnvvMJK8
“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—”132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwEWimSqL17
Holmlund and I start protesting at the same time, but Blue silences all of us with his quiet words. 132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIFkmKvAKLs
“That’s right. You’re right. I grew up rich. And Monti, Hud, and Cunny all grew up without much money.”132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuk7NLiADo7
All of us just stare at Blue for a moment.132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr1EqlEsZIA
“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…”132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5KzHnzrh4J
His voice falters, and I loop an arm around him. Then I swing around to face Rebecca. 132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1PIJVhKTrJ
“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.”132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ5DOoQLVsG
Brilliant. Insult one of the most powerful journalists in the country, Keegan. Very strategic.132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7uNHFk3PlD
“I think we may have to cancel this interview,” Holmlund piles on, shaking his head and shooting me a look. 132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcK8qTf6qZS
I guess I’m supposed to leave the verbal jousting to him. 132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHOWlopywdL
“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.” 132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjDvS6lQvLC
“From a journalist of your stature, Ms. Wolfe, I expected an objective, open-minded approach. But this, this is the exact opposite of that.”132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkWmYuFHfeG
Again the grave, theatrical shake of his head. 132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTRa2KeFKhX
There’s no way he’s really canceling the interview. He’s just angling for better treatment. 132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkfsfaIHFnE
I can tell from the way Rebecca’s bright-red lips curve into a cynical smile that she’s not buying it either.132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡattwpP7CFF
“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.”132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2Wi7xMbsmu
She pauses dramatically, studying her bright red fingernails. 132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvrJfKFfwfm
“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.”132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡptHN749hfe
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. 132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtT2eGhwDDl
It could even be the family members of the men who died. It’s inevitable some of them will give media interviews.132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf9BhQW5c6j
But we were supposed to get our story out there first.132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs9UBKnzZkV
Rebecca turns back toward me and Blue. 132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ38OhUGQEfl
“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.”132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡncAOkDyQVE
No one says anything for a long, awkward moment.132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFNkJAiNe57
“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.132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6Wumz7oAhr
“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.”132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLCf7PvzhDX
Holmlund makes some small, disagreeable sound, but we all know it’s just for show.132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdf9yY2b1kW
“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.”132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ24paykj5ww
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.132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡInExNdE6hK
And Holmlund is probably right. That media storm may be the only thing that can save Blue.132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJB6sxZIWM6
“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.”132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX80WQnuRhO
It’s like the three of us are frozen. We just stand there. Not even Holmlund says anything. 132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ2kinDC1Kl
“Still,” Rebecca sighs, turning on her heel, “if you’ve decided to cancel, that’s fine. That’s fine.”132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn6nCl595lY
“Wait.” Blue tucks my hand into his arm as he says it and pulls me with him toward the camera. “We’ll do it.” 132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdYvrBp8mUA
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.”132Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR8F6CcRign
~~~
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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