[Chapter 69: You ssed with the Wrong People]
In the business van, Hawke pulled out his Nokia phone and dialed gan Taylor's number. "Are you at work? I just got so explosive news. It's almost as big as when Downey got shot, and the ripple effects could be even greater."
gan imdiately shouted from the other end, "Where are you?"
Hawke glanced outside. "Santa Monica Boulevard, just got to Westwood."
"I live in Westwood. Just co to my place," gan offered a quick address.
Hawke hung up and repeated it to Edward. The van turned south at the next intersection, heading towards West Olympic Boulevard.
...
Within five minutes, the vehicle stopped in front of a small, standalone villa.
Hawke grabbed his laptop, stepped out on his own, and stood in front of the visual intercom, pressing the doorbell.
The door opened, and gan's voice floated out. "Co in, but rember to close the door behind you."
Hawke crossed the small yard, and by the ti he reached the front door, gan had already pulled it open.
She wore a satin house robe, her face fresh-faced without makeup. "You arrived too quickly; I haven't had ti to change."
Hawke complinted her, "You're naturally beautiful, even without makeup."
"Thanks." gan got straight to the point. "You've been slacking lately; it's been a while since you've brought any hot news. Whose scoop did you get this ti?"
Sitting on the couch, Hawke opened his laptop. "San Diego Chargers star receiver Miller Collins. He's gay and ssing around with n."
gan turned to him, looking a bit surprised. "I thought he had a family."
"The model husband in the NFL, wife and kids," Hawke clicked on a video. "It's a little eye-catching."
gan had seen all kinds of news before and remained unusually calm. As the two appeared on screen, she hit the enter key to pause and confirm their identities.
When it reached the crucial mont, she did the sa, pausing again to ascertain the extent of the content.
After watching through, she lanted, "The critical parts need to be blurred. It really loses a lot of interest."
Hawke comnted, "The other person isn't a public figure, so his face can't be shown."
"I know." gan wasted no ti. "What's your price?"
Hawke didn't imdiately state a figure; instead, he said, "Just ten minutes ago, Miller himself called , offering $1 million to buy back the video."
Before gan could react, he slightly shook his head. "But I turned him down. Claire had previously called , saying 'Midnight Entertainnt' was seeing a drop in ratings and lacked any sensational news; I thought this scoop could help you."
gan scrutinized him, trying to discern the truth in his words. "What are you getting at?"
Hawke explained, "First, your offer needs to be reasonable. Second, you need to withstand the pressure. 'Midnight Entertainnt' has to break this story. Otherwise, there's no point in us talking."
gan placed her hand on the laptop. "This scoop is mine."
She pulled out a small phone from her robe pocket and dialed Claire's number. "Find out how many brands Miller Collins from the San Diego Chargers has endorsent deals with, and check if any are the main advertisers for Channel 11 or any TV station."
Hawke remained silent, knowing gan wasn't fully confident in him.
The call on the other end quickly returned. "No main advertisers, but there are ads running on Fox; the scale isn't large."
gan hung up. "I guarantee it'll air."
Hawke added, "There are clearer broadcasting terms. If you get authorization but don't air it, I'll take it to other dia platforms."
gan needed explosive news even more; she needed soone who could continually provide it. She fixed her gaze on Hawke. "If soone really pressures , I'll resign to resist them."
The show's ratings directly impacted her career.
"$150,000." Hawke cut her off from negotiating. "The higher the sunk cost, the less pressure you'll face."
gan replied, "$150,000 is my maximum authorization; that's what I can offer."
Hawke tilted his head toward the door. "Let's head to the station."
gan responded, "Wait for to change."
...
Santa Monica, Palisades.
Miller hung up the phone, feeling dazed as he returned to his house.
It felt as if all his vitality had been sucked away by Hawke from a distance.
After a long mont, he regained his senses and found Kevin missing, his gift replaced by a note.
The note simply read, "Goodbye."
Miller furrowed his brow, putting it aside temporarily since his agent and publicist had arrived.
The last one to co in was his friend from childhood.
A tattooed white guy nad Henry.
Miller quickly recapped the situation, including what Hawke had said.
Neither the publicist nor the agent were surprised about him ssing around with n. Without any damaging rumors, how could that still be considered a star?
The agent said, "That guy was right. If this gets out to the team, it's going to be a ss. You're in your contract year, negotiating a renewal with the team, and we're still working on landing a big deal."
He looked pained as if he might explode. "The sponsors are going to be worse. When there's profit involved, they're quicker than anyone else. If they push down on it and use too much of their resources, they'll be the first to abandon you. They'll not only cut their ties imdiately but could also accuse you of a breach of contract."
Miller still held onto so hope. "Can't they help contain this?"
The publicist shattered his illusion. "You're not Jordan, you're not Manning, you're not Woods. In their eyes, you don't hold that much value. If a video lands in the hands of major dia, how much do you think they'd spend to manage your crisis and suppress the news? To abandon you? All they need is to activate the breach clauses and find a new spokesperson. When past stars faced PR crises, the first thing sponsors did was to cut ties!"
Miller's heart sank lower, almost to the ocean floor.
"You're facing a formidable opponent this ti. From what you're saying, this guy sounds tough." The agent's face was serious. "He investigated you before shooting, accounting for all of this."
The publicist added, "That Kevin is probably bait sent out by them."
As Miller slowly pulled himself together, he had considered this idea.
The agent wanted to say he had ssed with the wrong person, but ultimately held his tongue.
Miller looked at the public relations manager and then at the agent. "What do we do next?"
The publicist stood and walked a few steps. "We divide it into three parts. First, keep contacting those people; whether it's through apologies or hefty bribes, we must temporarily stop the video from reaching the dia. It's best to reach a confidentiality agreent. As long as the video doesn't fall into the hands of major dia, we can still find a way."
Miller sighed, "I offered a million bucks, and they turned down." He felt helpless. "I just bought a house in LA; I don't have that much cash on hand. They're too alert to trick."
The publicist nodded, continuing, "Second, we need to apply pressure to the dia. I'll do my best in this regard, but don't get your hopes too high. If the video lands with smaller dia, we can handle it; if it ends up with the National Enquirer or Fox's subsidiaries, it'll be incredibly difficult. Be prepared with over $5 million cash."
Such a hefty sum, Miller couldn't manage.
Liquidating fixed assets took ti.
Coming from a traditional white family, he had no connections in the dia industry's entangled web.
The publicist continued, "Beyond conventional thods, there are unconventional ones. You ntioned two nas?"
Miller said, "Eric Erson, a small director; I looked him up -- he only has one tape movie. The other is Edward Connor, nicknad the Savior, a blue-collar worker from Compton. I haven't found anything else on him yet."
The agent added, "Anyone hanging with these two isn't going to have high connections."
High-end public relations, much like high-end business battles, often ca off plain and straightforward. The publicist said directly, "Let's look into them; we'll do our best to stall them with conventional ans."
He turned to Henry, Miller's friend. "As for unconventional ans, we aren't equipped for that."
Henry answered, "Leave that to ."
The agent picked up the phone, contacting people in and out of the dia industry.
Hawke and Edward had sold plenty of stories and photos.
Before long, the agent gathered information from the National Enquirer and Hollywood Life about West Coast dia Entertainnt Studio.
Then, through the company na, they dug up more details.
Henry ca from a white gang organization and quickly gathered a crew.
...
Century City, Fox Television Center.
Hawke signed the agreent and received a $150,000 check.
gan had returned from the Channel 11 director's office and called Hawke into her office imdiately.
Hawke settled on the couch in the waiting area, asking, "Did you get things sorted with the director?"
"Don't worry, the news will definitely air," gan replied simply. "To avoid leaks, only I, Claire, and channel director Cynthia know the specifics right now. Since it involves three advertisers, as per our agreent, we'll notify them three hours before the broadcast."
"I believe you can handle the pressure." Hawke prepared to say goodbye.
But gan called him back. "Hawke, I need to remind you of sothing."
Hawke looked at her.
"There's a dia friend who called to ask about the news. I evaded her questions, but she let slip that soone is inquiring about the West Coast Studio," gan warned.
Hawke nodded. "I understand."
gan cautioned, "Be careful. I'm counting on you to bring more hot news."
"Thanks." Hawke left the office and quickly left.
...
After rejoining Edward and Eric, he instructed the forr to drive back to East Hollywood.
He remarked, "They're looking for us."
Edward replied, "I keep getting calls on my phone. I didn't answer them, just like you said."
Hawke urged, "Stay alert while driving."
Eric seed nervous. "Is a high-stakes business war coming?"
Hawke nodded slightly, removed his workout jacket, slipped on a shoulder holster, and pulled out the legally purchased Glock 19 to slide into the holster.
He rummaged through his clothing pockets and found the gun permit he had just received two days earlier.
The business van returned smoothly to East Hollywood.
Hawke pointed to the ranch park. "Don't go back to the studio; head to the parking lot, and let's go to Frank's."
He had already considered that they might be facing high-end business dealings, so he had prepared accordingly.
*****
/Sayonara816.
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