Saylor steps away, and my only condolence is that I get to watch her walk up the steps. I follow quickly and take my place next to her as she stands in front of the camera marked ESPN.
“Thank you for coming here on short notice. My clien
t Travis Kidd has a statement to make. Once he has concluded, I will take only a few questions related to his statement.”
Saylor steps away and motions for me to start. I have what I’m supposed to say memorized, but the words seem fuzzy in my brain. The cameras start flashing, and I imagine the video feeds are rolling.
“For days, I have kept my silence while the police investigated me on the accusation of rape. I’m here today, of my own accord, just like I was when they questioned me, to submit my DNA sample. I want to clear my name, and this is the way to do it. Thank you.”
Immediately my name is called out, and questions are thrown my way. Saylor stands front and center, poised and perfect.
“Paul,” she says, pointing at the man whom others are surrounding.
“Travis, have you met with the Renegades? What’s your status on the team?”
Saylor nods, so I answer. “We’ve met, and I’m an active member of the team.”
Once I finish, the questions are once again being yelled at me.
“June,” Saylor says, signaling to a woman off to the side.
“Travis, your name has been added to the Cancer Center’s annual ball. Can you confirm that you’ll be in attendance?”
I give Saylor a sideways glance to see if I’m going. She nods. “Yes, I’ll be there.”
“Kenny.” Saylor points to a man in the back. There’s something about his face that makes me feel uneasy.
“Travis, you have twenty women coming forward, stating you’ve raped them. Why would you voluntarily give your DNA? Why implicate yourself?”
My hands grip the sides of the podium, and my teeth clench. Saylor rests a reassuring hand on my back but I still can’t find the words to answer. I want to yell out that I’m innocent, that the only thing I’ve done wrong is become a womanizer, but the words escape me.
“That’ll be all. Thanks for coming,” Saylor says as she grabs my arm and pulls me toward the door.
As soon as we’re inside, I realize what she’s done. While her intentions may have been in my best interest, I look guilty as fuck to the people out there and the ones watching at home. “What the fuck, Saylor? Let me defend myself.” I point toward the door and step toward it but she stops me. She may be short but she’s strong, and I’m weak when it comes to her.
“You froze, Travis. I was protecting you. As of now, Irvin doesn’t have any idea who these other women are, and for all we know, they could be after money. Let Irvin and me do our jobs. It’s what you pay us for. Can you please just trust me?” she asks softly. She pleads with me to do this because then she doesn’t have to. I will get to the bottom of why she can’t come forward, and it will be tonight.
Irvin motions for me to walk down the hall and points toward a room that I enter, with Saylor following behind. A female police officer is there, waiting for me.
“Sir, before I begin, can you confirm that you are here under your own free will?”
“Yes,” I say.
“Please open your mouth.” I do as she says, and she takes a long cotton swab and sticks it in my mouth, rubbing it against my cheek. And within seconds, it is done. She slips the stick into a bag and exits the room.
“That’s it?”
“Yeah, that’s it,” Saylor says with a sigh.
Irvin walks to the window and lifts a slat in the blinds to peek outside. “Everyone is still outside. I was hoping they would leave.”
“I figured. They’ll have questions, but we are going to ignore them. We’ll walk out there with our heads held high and with smiles on our faces,” she states as if nothing is wrong.
We do as she says. Saylor even waves at a few of them. I think about flipping them off but figure that would be all over social media, and right now I don’t need any more negative press.
Irvin offers to have his car drive us to our respective homes. When his driver pulls up in front of Saylor’s apartment complex, I get out to help her out of the car. As soon as she’s on the curb, I tap the car and watch it speed away.
“What are you doing?”