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Icouldn’tquitetellwhere I was mentally after that meeting. On one hand, it was distressing to know that the magnificent and world-renowned OVT Broadcasting Network was having trouble keeping up with the new age of media consumption. On the other, it wasabsolutelyhorrifying how my old boss, Jebediah Olson, had basically declared an all-out war against OVT. When I quit my job as his press release writer, I vowed I would never associate myself with that man again.
But there I was, left in the meeting room with Jebediah’s face still frozen on the screen. The board members left after Ben declared he would need to consult with a couple of key people before making a strategic move after Olson lambasted the network. I was not, however, expecting to be part of what he was talking about. Lucy and Eric were also in the meeting room, with the two of them sitting next to me and Ben, respectively. It was kind of daunting how this absolutely massive boardroom table was filled with only four people on both ends.
“So,” Ben began, pointing at the man frozen on the screen. The very man threatening the company’s reputation. “What can you tell me about him?” He looked expectantly at me and Lucy. “Of course, I'm aware that his tendencies are a bit extreme.”
“You would be absolutely right, Mr. Oviatt,” Lucy confirmed, fear lingering in her eyes. It was rare to see her look so unsettled. But, I couldn’t blame her. It was her story that made Olson lash out like this. Even though her story was completely true. “Any person with a grasp of fact-checking can quickly verify that the report I wrote about him selling weapons to terrorists is completely based in fact.”
“I don’t think anyone can dispute that at all.It’s amazing to me how he confidently parades around and tells uswe’rethe liars,” Eric quickly agreed with Lucy. He stood up and started pacing the room.
Angry, frustrated silence blasted through the room, vibrating off the walls. I felt like everyone was waiting for me to say something about my former employer. And I knew that Ishouldsay something, but I was just taking my time to process everything. There was always a hope in the back of your head when you quit your job that the past wouldn’t come back around and haunt you.
“Working with Jebediah Olson’s team was the worst six years of my life. I regret that it was my first job,” I confessed, unable to stop myself from rubbing my eyes in exasperation. “He’s…vicious. He asks for one thing and expects you to read his mind when he suddenly decides for another thing. He’s notorious for being a deeply disrespectful, and quite frankly, cruel person. And he keeps getting away with it.”
My head began to throb at the memories of my encounters with Olson. I remembered one time, about two years ago, when he was reviewing a press release for approval, he absolutely flamed me. The conversation played in my memory like a movie.
“What is this?” Jebediah asked, a scornful expression made his face look all puffy. He was a deep red.
“U-Um… Sir, it’s the press release you asked for to explain your recent comments on the congresswoman’s statements on—” I tried to explain, but he cut me off by putting up his hand. It was his signature. He would ask you a question, but never let you finish.
“I know what it is,” Jebediah seethed, immediately making me flinch away from his enraged eyes. “Butwhydo I need to release this for those ignorant little—”
Andit was best for me to stop the movie there. Nothing good came out of his mouth that day. Well, nothing good came out of his mouth ever. He was unnerving, unstable, andimpossibleto work with.
I brought myself back to the meeting room, where Ben, Eric, and Lucy were all still waiting for my input.
“And as we all know, the worst thing about him is how he uses his significant number of supporters to start an uproar.”
“His criminal actions of selling weapons to terrorists are true, but we’ve always known that the system is rotten, so he gets away with it,” Lucy said, looking completely deflated. She frowned and rubbed her temples.
Ben sat back in his chair, hands steepled in front of his broad chest, looking contemplative.
“Whether we like it or not, we can’t do much about that. We've already reported what was true anyway,” he said calmly, looking at everyone in the room one by one. “Our primary concern is how to counter these attacks that Jebediah Olson has been making.”
I sighed, trying to focus by sitting properly in my seat.
“Olson is cunning. It is the reason why he’s gotten in such a position of power over the years. He will use all of this noise and chaos to cover up his own actions, and he willespeciallydo it again now that he’s running for President,” I explained, feeling a twinge in my heart for the next few words I was about to say. Regret filled every cell in my body. “And I helped him do that for the past couple of years. I helped him hurt a lot of people, but not again, not this time.”
Lucy looked at me with resolve, her confidence slowly being reactivated. Eric gave me a wide grin, nodding his approval.
Ben stared at me with something that looked a lot like awe.
It was the first time I had seen him so surprised, and I couldn’t tell if it was my admitting of the sins I did when I was working under Jebediah Olson or if it was my sudden resolute attitude towards the crisis at hand. But then, he smiled. He genuinely smiled, and even barked out a laugh.
It was like the eye of a hurricane. The whole world might be blowing down right now, but for a flash, there was sunshine.
“To think you were the girl hiding in the corner about a month ago,” he said. His voice was uncharacteristically soft, and I caught a glimpse of Lucy and Eric sharing a confused look from the corner of my eye.
“I learned from the best. Mr. Oviatt.” I almost blushed, but I forced a few calming thoughts and kept my face professional.
But I really did appreciate everything about Ben. Especially when he pushed me to do better at my job. Even if we misunderstood each other much of the time. But he still could have been nicer about it.
“What’s our next step, Ben?” Eric asked from the bank of windows. I could see some stress pulling at his eyes, but he had his game face on. Eric was more than ready to take down a few assholes.
Ben was silent for a moment.
“The board members thought we should have Olivia do more of her fun pieces,” Ben finally said, earning a confused look from all of us.
“But what would that do besides distract people for a bit?” Lucy asked, alarm in her voice. “It wouldn’t stop him from using his followers to go after us.”
