Georgia was about as subtle as a migraine, but she’d used a leading tone that made Alec wonder if something had gone wrong. “Update?”
“We’re seeing some incredible numbers.”
At this point in his career, Alec was quite practiced at dissecting the ratings, and he knew for a fact that the numbers were not incredible. They werefine, just like everything with the show. “Did you see something I didn’t? Audience looked to be in line with our usual numbers.”
“I’m talking about online and social media. We got a report from marketing this morning and they’re not only fantastic, they’re still growing. That’s what has everyone really excited. We’ve had tens of thousands of new visitors to the website, and the replay of the interview is still getting traffic. Some days, it’s more than twenty times what the show gets on even the most high-profile segments. The discussion boards have blown up. And we’ve been experimenting with snippets of the replay on social media. They’re going over big.”
Alec sat in his makeup chair, turning it so he didn’t have to see his own reflection. He always looked like hell after the show. “That’s great news.” He wasn’t sure if he was supposed to take credit. He knew that much of the attention was because of Brooklyn and her very relatable problem, rather than Alec setting the world on fire with his interview skills.
“That’s a lot of clicks. A lot of ad revenue.”
“Happy to hear it.” He really wished she would just get to the point of all of this.
“The show is inviting Ms. Monroe to return for another segment early next week. So she can give America an update and we can continue to capitalize on the attention she’s receiving.”
“Oh.”Capitalize.His heart sank. So that was what this was really about. This was Georgia’s “thanks, you’re so fabulous and amazing, but sorry” call. He’d been on the receiving end of these a few too many times in his career. And he frankly had very little patience for it anymore. “I don’t think it’s a good idea for me to be involved with anything else having to do with the show and Ms. Monroe. It wasn’t a great idea for me to commingle my personal and professional lives in the first place.”
“I couldn’t agree more. And that’s not anything you need to worry about. I’m calling because you pulled in a big win for us. I think that earns you a real shot at moving into news, if that’s what you want.”
Just that morning, Alec had done an in-depth story about the embarrassment of toenail fungus, so the answer was easy. “Yes. I really want to move into news.” He hoped he didn’t sound too desperate, but he also didn’t want to downplay his enthusiasm. “More than anything.”
“Okay, then. I have an interview for you. With Barry Millner.”
“The Wall Street pyramid scheme guy?” Alec had imagined his big break unfolding in many ways, via a possible array of interviewees—disgraced politicians, or athletes who’d overcome impossible odds, or perhaps foreign leaders with colorful reputations. But he hadn’t considered white collar criminals, and now he was kicking himself because this wasexactlythe sort of story he wanted. Barry Millner was a true scumbag, and it would be a pleasure to ask him hard questions. Alec relished the thought of taking him to task.
“He’s in a federal prison Upstate. Robin Ortiz is the segment producer. She’s been communicating with him and has secured the interview, but it’ll be your job to get him to talk. He hasn’t gone on the record about anything since he began serving his sentence, but he’s not getting any younger. And we think Mr. Millner might be ready to spill his guts if that happens.”
Alec’s mind was racing like crazy. He couldn’t wait to dive in. “Yeah. Of course. I’d love to take a crack at it.”
“Perfect. Robin will be in touch with particulars. You’ll need to conduct the interview in the prison. I think viewers will really want to see him in the orange jumpsuit.”
The mental image of the scene popped right into Alec’s head, sitting in a cold and austere room with the light shining hard on old Barry Millner while Alec grilled the hell out of him. Maybe they’d even shoot some B-roll of Alec and Barry walking around the prison yard. The whole thing had the potential to be incredibly exciting. “He did cheat thousands of people out of their retirement funds.”
“And caused the collapse of two major pension funds. You asked for meaty, this is a meaty story.”
“I can’t wait. Thank you so much for the opportunity.” The thought thrilled Alec to no end. Finally, something substantial. And it would help to keep his mind off the craziness surrounding Brooklyn.
“I’m not sure of the exact schedule, but it’ll likely be after you attend theLavamanpremiere next Friday, so no worries about a conflict.”
Alec had completely forgotten. “Wait. How do you know about Jason Adams inviting me?”
“All on-air talent is strongly encouraged to attend.”
Of course this was happening. The network and film studio were owned by the same massive media conglomerate. Alec had to swallow the sheer agony climbing its way up into his throat. He despised the red carpet, standing there in a tuxedo, trying to suck in his gut and remember the most flattering angles. “No. I did not know that.” So much for substantial. Why did it always have to be one step forward, one step back when it came to his job? This career Cha-Cha was a nightmare.
“There was a memo.”
I never read the memos.“If I do this strongly encouraged thing, can I get out of the Thanksgiving Day parade?”
“Oh, no. The network will never take you off of that. You’re too good at enthusiastically describing the balloons. But don’t worry aboutLavaman. It’ll be fun. It’s actually a fan event. People wear costumes. You’ll enjoy yourself.”
“No tuxedoes?”
“Not unless you’re dying to wear one.”
For a moment, he considered continuing with his protest, but ultimately decided it was best if he continued to play nice. He really didn’t want to mess up his chance at the news division. “Okay, great. Sounds good.”
“Thank you, Alec. The network is excited about these next steps. Now we just need you to dazzle us.”
