"Arrest that woman," Michael croaks.
"Arrest yourself," I shoot back. From here, he doesn’t look like a billionaire media magnate at all anymore. "I have a story to tell."
You remember when I had to go real quick the other day? I couldn’t tell you where I was going? Told you to cover for me?
"This committee’s time is valuable, Senator," the Majority Leader tells me as his position as Chairman of the Ethics Committee. Although in truth, he might as well just hand the gavel over to me or to Michael or even Carter or Liam. He’s lost control of these proceedings and he knows it.
"This won’t take but a moment, Mr. Chairman," I tell him. I turn around to face the audience. "In fact, we have most of the principle cast of characters in this room."
I scan the crowd. There! I raise my hand a
nd point to Tina Ling.
"We have Tina Ling, who has made no secret of the fact that she’s representing the city of Shanghai, China," I say to the audience, no longer talking to the committee. The photographers leave their spot underneath the raised dais of the Committee and go to the sides of the room to snap pictures of me pointing toward Tina. "She’s even told us her affiliation with the Communist Party of the People’s Republic of China," I finish and pause.
I look around the room. Everyone is hanging on my words. I feel some of the old power coming back.
"What she didn’t tell us is that she’s also a Managing Director of the China First Bank, Mr. Chairman," I say, whirling around to face the Committee. "And that may be okay. Unlike the United States, we can’t regulate what other jobs public officials have and they are likely going to have different rules."
Michael looks like he’s going to be sick. I think he’s figured out where I’m going.
"But where it does become a problem, members of the Committee," I say with a smile. "Is when China First Bank has a majority shareholder that’s a corporation headquartered in the United States."
This causes ripples of conversation throughout the room. A US corporation working with a Chinese corporation with ties to the Communist Party? If the public ever found out something like this, there would be a backlash.
And I’m about to cause one.
"What we didn’t know, that some will find interesting," I say, and again relish the pause that I give everyone. "Is that China First Bank is in fact owned through a series of other holding companies by none other than the same holding companies that own Anders Media."
For a moment there is nothing but silence as people comprehend what’s going on. I decide to get in the last word.
I don't think it’ll be quiet enough to talk for the next few minutes.
"For those of you who don’t get what I’m saying, this whole thing has been orchestrated by none other than that man," I say pointing a finger toward the dais. "Michael Anders, the billionaire CEO of Anders Media."
Again, for a second there’s nothing but silence. It’s a lot to take in.
And that’s when the commotion starts. It starts with a whisper. One person looking over their shoulder to the person sitting next to them. Could it be? Looks are exchanged. Glances are given. People are a bit nervous. Is it true?
And then someone whispers something. Maybe ‘I can’t believe it’ or ‘Can you imagine?’
All of a sudden the person sitting next to them chimes in. And then the person next to them has to speak a little louder. And then you hear something from the next row. But the people next to you didn’t. So you repeat it. A bit louder. And then someone hears you. And they repeat it. And you think of something. You say it, all pretense of whispering gone now.
"Order!" The Chairman shouts and bangs his gavel.
But this time, it’s no use.
The audience does quiet down a little bit as the Chairman of the Committee keeps banging his gavel, but Michael speaks up.
"Where’s your proof for these wildly inaccurate accusations, Ms. Hawthorne?" Michael asks. "How do we know this isn’t just some stunt you’re pulling to save your own career from your licentious behavior?"
And I was ready for that. This is actually where I went off to the other day when I got to the city.
"Normally, I’d have no proof, Mayor Anders," I say and people quiet down. They’re wondering if I just got them riled up as an excuse to stall. "But I got a phone call and went down to meet someone the other day."
Michael looks up as I turn to the doorway.
A tall, well-dressed young man walks in. He’s 6’ 3", well-built, and you can see that he knows how to carry himself. People know who he is, and if you were right there, you’d know exactly who he was too.