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“Well, my professional dreams have been shattered and I’ve just been blackmailed and assaulted. But I’m with you, so I guess that counts for something.”
He wrapped his arms around her and they strolled inside the apartment foyer, where Joseph kissed her hard – out of the way of any prying paparazzi. He gazed affectionately into her eyes, then they went up to Dylan’s apartment. Dylan was waiting at the front door looking anxious but welcoming. He seemed naturally surly, but he offered his hand for her to shake. “Hi, Eleanor,” he said. “Great to meet you at last.”
“You too,” she said cringing.
“Come in. Sarah’s just dishing up some dinner for you and Joe.”
“Thank you so much. I’m freezing.”
He led them through the apartment and into the dining room, relishing the heat as it melted her frozen limbs. She saw out of the huge windows that it had just started snowing heavily, but this place was warm and homey. It was full of friendly family vibes – something Eleanor never really felt in the home of her own parents. But this place seemed to glow with affection somehow.
“Did you put some ice on your face?” Dylan asked as they followed him down the hallway.
She reached up and rubbed her cheek. “No. I didn’t think to.”
“Alright, I’ll get you some in a sec.”
He pushed opened the dining room door and all eyes were on Eleanor. She glanced around the table and noticed the family resemblance between Joseph and his brothers. She was introduced to Adam – who seemed to be the inspiration behind Joseph’s cocky charm; and Ivan – who seemed tougher than the others. Eleanor was relieved that he was being transmitted from the UK via the laptop webcam, because she found him slightly intimidating. But perhaps he was just worried about this terrible Gerald Stinger situation… Sarah was Dylan’s girlfriend – and she seemed level-headed and friendly. And finally Amy was Adam’s fiancée, who was sweet and hospitable.
Joseph drew back a chair for her. “Take a seat, Ellie.”
She sat and gazed at the laptop. Ivan was glowering at her.
“So how are you going to get us out of this mess, Joseph?” Ivan asked.
Joseph sat next to Eleanor and held her hand, showing solidarity.
“We’re going to do all we can… but just as a precaution I was thinking maybe you should come home, Ivan? If The New York Spin publish this, the British tabloids will no doubt jump in too. You’d be surrounded by salivating journalists in no time.”
He sighed. “Yeah, I guess I should.”
“We need to think of damage limitation,” Adam said. “The cat’s out the bag, so now we should try to control it.”
Eleanor sat up tall. “I have a plan.”
“Oh yeah?” Ivan said.
“Yeah. I know it might sound crazy but I think we should bring down News Scape. Give them a taste of their own medicine. Expose their dirt and force them not to publish anything about Ivan – or else we’ll tell the world what they’ve been up to.”
This idea was met with silence. Dylan and Sarah exchanged a dubious look. Amy gazed at Eleanor with eyes full of sympathy. Joseph stared at her in shock. Adam burst into laughter.
Ivan scoffed. “Tell you what would be easier – why don’t you invent a time machine and go back to dismantle the entire apparatus of the Roman Empire?”
Joseph squeezed Eleanor’s hand tenderly. “What did you have in mind, sweetheart?”
Eleanor steeled herself, pushing away her nerves. “Well, technically I’m still in charge of this story. I was thinking we could dig a little deeper into Stinger’s underhand techniques. Do you remember, Joseph, when Bob Crowe pointed that gun at Blair Robertson?”
Joseph shrugged. “Sure. The rogue reporter who’d just got out of prison, right?”
“Yeah. He said something about it all being corrupt. We both dismissed him as a nutjob, but what if he could give us some info? I reckon he’d be glad to help us – to get revenge on News Scape for abandoning him when he was in trouble. It seems like all the journalists at News Scape are being encouraged to use illegal techniques, and I think it’s time someone brought them down.”
Joseph’s handsome face lit up with excitement. “And how about we use The Big Society to get the story out there independently? Our goal could be to get Stinger arrested – I mean, he broke into my apartment; and who else has he blackmailed? And – more importantly – how much of this does Robertson know about?”
Joseph and Eleanor grinned at each other. She could feel the doubt reverberating around the room from the others, but as long as they both had faith in this crazy plan, then maybe – just maybe – they’d win this game.
Ivan brought Eleanor back to reality. He raised a sceptical eyebrow. “Do you even know where to find this Bob Crowe guy?”
“No,” Eleanor said. “But I’ll find out. I am, after all, an investigative journalist.”
