[Chapter 160: Using Money as a Hamr]
Straining in awkward positions for so long, Campos felt his feet going numb.
But upon seeing Will Smith and Duane Martin, he perked up and adjusted his lens for the clearest shot.
The sound of Juan hitting the shutter echoed beside him.
Through the lens, Campos noticed sothing off about the two n's movents.
They removed their towels and moved forward, disappearing behind a window.
Campos cursed inwardly -- just as he thought he would miss the most exciting shot, the n reappeared behind another window.
Los Angeles, bathed in bright sunshine year-round, had houses that prioritized lighting and large windows and doors in their designs.
Thanking the architect silently, Campos kept filming.
Behind another window was a couch; Will Smith was leaning over it, while Duane held him down.
[A/N: The above was quoted by Will Smith's assistant Bilaal Salaam.]
Having fild this scene was more than enough.
As the two remained unnoticed, Campos turned off the cara, telling Juan, "Let's go."
Juan nodded but moved his legs to get up. After being in such a cramped position for too long, he stumbled, grasped the fra instinctively, and sent the cara crashing to the tal fra below.
A series of not-so-loud thuds rang through the night.
The street was quiet and narrow, and this small noise found its way into the open windows of a nearby vehicle, grabbing Bilaal's attention.
Bilaal turned his head toward the noise and spotted the water tower in the park, catching sight of the two n climbing down.
Though dark, he could make out a cara bag slung over one of their shoulders.
Bilaal threw open the car door, bolted toward them, brandishing a revolver, yelling, "Stop! You two, don't move! I'm ard!"
"Go!" Campos ignored him entirely, urging Juan to retreat quickly.
They were over twenty ters apart, and that punk held a small revolver; unless he had the marksmanship of a seasoned detective, he wouldn't hit them.
Jumping off the water tower, Juan retrieved the damaged cara and bolted after Campos.
...
Bilaal hesitated to fire; if the issue blew up, they'd have far bigger problems to manage.
He pursued the two over the fence while dialing Will Smith's number to alert him. "Two paparazzi just took shots; they could have recorded sothing. You better think of a way to handle this!"
Will Smith, still fending off Duane, asked, "You were outside the whole ti. What could they possibly see?"
Duane interjected, "They climbed up the park's water tower and shot us sneaking."
Will's instincts kicked in, as he unconsciously glanced through the window, dimly aware of a tall structure looming in the night sky.
He realized this wasn't good. "Get those guys!"
"Not possible!" Bilaal panted, "They're in a car and taking off. I got the license plate...."
Duane caught a hint of urgency in Will's voice, asking, "Will, what's going on?"
"Nothing, stay calm," Will responded into the phone. "Make sure to rember the plate number. I'm hanging up now."
With long strides, Will paced, restless, as he reached for the phone to call his agent. "It's , Will. I've been shot at by paparazzi! Yes, it's extrely serious! If it gets out, I'm done for!"
...
Century City, at CAA, Jas Locke snapped upright in surprise, promptly standing from his chair. "I need to know what exactly happened!"
"I was with Duane, and soone very likely fild us!" Will declared urgently.
"Damn it!" Jas swore and quickly composed himself. "Stay calm; you need to co to CAA imdiately. I'll be here; you're one of our top clients, and we will mobilize every resource to assist you."
Will replied, "Bilaal noted down the license plate. Can you check for who they are?"
This task wasn't challenging for CAA. Jas quickly pressed, "Tell the license plate number."
After a brief pause, Will provided the number, and within a few minutes, news ca back declaring the plate was fake.
This was a common tactic used by paparazzi.
Jas wasn't surprised. He quickly called his team to initiate an ergency response.
CAA offered comprehensive services to its major clients. Besides their primary agents, stars had additional co-managing agents.
Maha Dakhil, who dealt with dia affairs, rushed back from an Oscar afterparty upon receiving the call.
Will Smith was hightailing it to CAA.
...
On Fountain Street, Hawke was watching the Oscars with Erika when he received a call from Campos and imdiately began reaching for his coat.
Erika asked, "Is it an ergency?"
Hawke paused, still planning to share a word. "A key mont in a future billionaire's career."
"Then go," Erika tossed him the keys to her rcedes. "Be safe."
Hawke caught the keys, tucked his gun in his pocket, and got into his bulletproof Benz. As he pulled away, he called Edward for an update.
Next, he dialed Caroline. "Get to the office right away."
Caroline complained, "I was just about to go for a beauty sleep."
Hawke dangled a carrot before her, "Do you want to be a CEO with a million-dollar salary?"
"I'm on my way!" Caroline recognized she had been PUA-ed but was pleased to comply.
...
Being the nearest, Edward got to the office first, following Hawke's instructions to wake Frank up from the RV.
Minutes later, Hawke and Caroline arrived at the office one after the other.
There were people on duty inside the Twitter building.
The four of them entered a small eting room, and Hawke laid out the situation briefly.
His phone buzzed again, and upon answering, he stated, "I've just confird news; we've also acquired the video of Jada Smith and Nate Dogg."
Caroline perked up, pacing in her red high heels in the eting room. "This ans we have two copies of Will Smith's scandalous videos, with one featuring him with a man. The other shows Jada Smith and the rapper..."
Frank cast her a glance, warning, "Don't get too excited; Will Smith has hundreds of millions of assets. If he's caught onto this, he'll find a way to track you down. CAA is the top-tier agency in the industry and can exert pressure through various channels."
Hawke had already considered that. "Money can indeed make a lot of things happen. Since Twitter just launched, our developnt heavily hinges on this strategy."
Although Frank was older, he noted, "You guys are taking too many risks."
Hawke declared, "The marketplace is just another battlefield."
The front desk personnel buzzed in. They announced a xican freelancer had arrived to trade news, claiming to have an appointnt with Caroline.
Caroline stepped out to negotiate and purchased two videos alongside bonus photos, swiftly returning to the eting room.
Edward connected a projector to his laptop and played the video footage.
The Smiths seed to enjoy a particularly open lifestyle.
...
At CAA headquarters in Century City, Will Smith sat in a eting room, the anger on his face having faded.
The situation had escalated, and now all he could do was co up with a solution.
Maha Dakhil, who had been briefed on the situation, was busy making calls, having already dialed out dozens of tis.
She was doing everything possible to prevent the video from being made public tonight.
As long as the video hadn't been released, there was still hope.
Jas Locke was also making calls, specifically hiring soone to check with the paparazzi in Los Angeles.
But the feedback was discouraging; all the paparazzi were busy watching the Oscars, with no one following Will Smith.
Jas shook his head at Will and sat down to think.
Maha finished her calls and said, "I've called every dia outlet in Los Angeles, big and small. If they receive sothing, they will definitely inform us."
That was CAA's confidence.
Will didn't waste words, directly stating his demands: "The video cannot leak."
"Absolutely!" Jas took over, analyzing the situation. "Based on what we know, there are three possibilities. First, the paparazzi didn't capture anything substantial, so there's nothing to sell."
Maha cautioned, "We shouldn't rely on that luck."
Jas continued, "Second, the paparazzi did get sothing, but they didn't co to a favorable agreent, or they don't know how much to sell it for, so the video's still in their hands. The last possibility, which we dread the most, is that the footage has been sold to a dia outlet we're unaware of, and they are planning to orchestrate a dia storm."
Will said, "Whether it's the second or third possibility, I don't want to see it happen."
Maha glanced at her watch: "We don't have much ti; we must find a solution quickly."
If they could have even just a night, they could strategize carefully.
Jas was acutely aware of the urgency. "Our biggest advantage is holding absolute resources."
Will understood: "Money isn't an issue."
"Those paparazzi are almost certainly still in Los Angeles." Jas conceived a plan: "We could throw money at them to flush them out!"
Maha looked at him curiously.
Jas explained, "Contact all major communication companies and have them send out a ssage to all mobile phone users in Los Angeles..."
"That will put in the spotlight and pique the curiosity of the public dia," Will thought, wanting a quiet resolution.
Jas was more pragmatic: "Given how it's escalated, preventing the video from leaking is our top priority. Think about your roles on screen, think about your public image. If that video is made public, do you think there will be any major productions wanting you as the lead? The sa audience that supported you will turn against you!"
He added, "Let's nail down the video, and the following excuses and justifications will be easy to find."
Will thought for a mont and nodded, "Let's move fast and use money to flush them out."
Jas made more calls and reached out to other senior partners to expedite the resolution.
That evening, just as the Oscars wrapped up, mobile users in Los Angeles received a text ssage.
*****
/Sayonara816.
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