The Fury - Jason Pinter [29]
hear about 'me and my pops'?"
"Oh, this and that," he said cryptically.
"Oh yeah? And who are these sources of yours?"
"Please," Tony said. "You have your channels of in
formation and I have mine. Let's leave it at that. But
listen, my man, I know a guy who knows a guy who
knows a lawyer who reps all the celebrities when they,
shall we say, stray on the wrong side of the law.
Remember how Paris Hilton got released from prison
after serving an hour for her DUI? That was my bud."
"Didn't she have to spend a month in there after the
judge sent her back?"
"Wasn't my friend's fault. Judge was an idiot. Can't
luck out every time, but you can pay for the best luck
possible. Hey, and keep your head up, because they're
salivating for scandal over at the Dispatch. "
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89
"That surprises me about as much as the sun rising."
This didn't come as a shock to me, since Paulina
Cole had all but made it her duty to end my career. So
far the only surprise was that it hadn't been plastered
over the front page. Since my only use for Tony Valen
tine was as a font of information, I decided to play
along.
"Out of curiosity, my man, why haven't they moved
on the story?"
"Oh, they've moved on it all right," he said, running
his hand flat along the air like a traveling car. "Right
now it's buried on page nine. Word is Ted Allen is still
basking in their Jack O'Donnell scoop. He thinks
pouncing on you too hard will make them look vindic
tive and undercut their efforts to shut us down. So
they're waiting until the trial gets under way, and based
on how the evidence looks, they'll report accordingly."
I felt a knot rise in my stomach. Ted Allen ran the
Dispatch, and since Paulina Cole worked for him, I was
never far off their radar. The evidence looked pretty
bad. Hopefully Tony didn't have sources at the police
department that would spill details. I trusted the man as
far as I could throw his veneer, but it was always good
to be prepared for whatever came next. I had no doubt
my father would get beaten in the press, but knowing
what was coming could soften the blow.
I thanked Tony and continued on. I knew his direct
line, just in case.
Waving hi to Rita, Wallace Langston's secretary, I
walked into his office. We both likely knew what was
coming, but that didn't make it any easier. At least I
could be thankful that this would probably hurt us both
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Jason Pinter
equally. Wallace was wearing a brown sport jacket. I
recognized the coat. A few months ago he'd chewed his
pen too deep during a meeting and the blue ink spilled
all over the breast. He'd gotten it cleaned the next day,
but the stain didn't wash out fully. Now a small, quartersize blue circle remained.
He didn't seem to care, and nobody else did. We all
knew Wallace had much bigger things to worry about,
and Lord knew how many other stains and abrasions
existed where we couldn't see. Oddly enough, we re
spected him for that. To Wallace, the work was more im
portant than the gloss, the ink more important than
anything. So we didn't mention it.
Other than the occasional chewed-to-death pen we
left on his desk as a friendly reminder.
Wallace looked up when he saw me come in. His lips
were tight beneath the closely shaved beard. His eyes
were bloodshot, as usual. He was hardly a peppy man,
unless he was excited about a story. And bad news
seemed to take him over like a death shroud. He wore
his heart on his sleeve, and unfortunately I'd had far too
many experiences piercing that heart.
I hoped it was strong enough for one more.
"I need some time off," I said.
Wallace nodded. I was right. He knew this was coming.
"I'm sorry about your father. But I don't think that's
the right decision."
"He's innocent," I said. "I need to help prove it."
Wallace nodded again. Not at the information, but
because he respected my feelings. "I imagine it might
be tough to work under those circumstances."
"Probably right," I said.
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91
"Might also help keep you focused," Wallace said.
"I don't