Chapter 328

“Daisy, you have the full report almost finished,” Shane said the next morning. We were working at the kitchen counter in Victor’s apartment.

Victor had sent me a single text since he left for work, telling me the police now had the video I had taken. They promised to keep Victor updated on the case.

“I put in a lot of hours working on it,” I said. “It has been a passion project.”

“It shows. You should get full credit for this story,” Shane declared. “With this much of the work already done, there’s no reason to share the byline with me.”

“It’s too long for newspapers. I need a shorter version,” I said. “But online platforms and magazines may run the entire report.”

Shane sipped the coffee I made for us. “Condensing it will be tricky, but I’m confident you can do it with very little help from me. You are a natural reporter and a fine investigator.”

I blushed. “Thanks. I enjoy doing both, so my career is moving in the right direction.”

He patted my hand. “Definitely. Now let me advise you on what to keep in the article.”

“Good, I’m not sure what to cut.” I sighed. “And I’m stuck on the headline. It should grab people’s attention. I want everyone to be captivated by the article and want to read the full report. ”

“Think of the article as a movie trailer,” Shane explained. “You need to capture the reader’s interest and make them want to know more. At the end of the article, provide a link to the full report.”

“Will that get people to read it?” I asked.

“More than half of the time, yes,” he replied. “They will be the people who care about the subject or are angered by your words.”

“Do you think there will be many angry readers?” I asked. It wasn’t my intention to anger anyone. I only wanted to help people.

“Definitely.” Shane finished the last of his coffee. “But that means you discovered an issue that would have continued without you shining a light on it.”

I thought about what happened at Frampton U after I began my investigation. It was a little scary to publish the story, knowing it would anger some people the same way, but I couldn’t not publish it.

“Let’s do it,” I decided. I refused to be intimidated. “What do you think I should use in the article?”

“Let’s print a copy of the original report and mark what should stay for the article,” Shane advised. “You understood the need for a strong opening statement. You should open with the same sentence in the article.”

Shane and I first worked on polishing the report. He then coached me while I created an informative article that people would want to read.

While giving it another read, I wondered if we were wasting our time. Who would read this article or report written by an unknown amateur journalist?

“Without your name on it, will anyone publish it?” I asked. One of the reasons I wanted to work with Shane was to get the story published.

“Let me make some calls,” Shane said and went outside onto Victor’s balcony.

While Shane was on the phone, I made us sandwiches and salad for lunch. I was slicing tomatoes when he came back inside with a grin on his face.

“My editor wants the first read,” he announced. “After they publish it, the article will be picked up by other major publishers.”

“Will your editor like it?” My stomach fluttered at the thought of my article being judged by professionals.

“I have no doubt he will want to publish it,” he assured me. “The story will blow the lid off discrimination in college admissions.”

I smiled and blushed at his words.

“Let’s eat, and I want to read it one more time before we turn it in,” I insisted.

“That’s a good idea,” Shane agreed. “We will have fresh eyes by then.”

Sitting at the kitchen counter again, we enjoyed the sandwiches and salad with iced tea.

My appetite was good despite the fact I was excited and nervous. I was grateful to Shane for helping me sidestep the red tape. I knew most publishers would not accept an unsolicited article or report.

Without him, I would have spent months querying publishers and maybe still not have it ever published. Besides talent, connections were important in the industry.

We finished lunch and read through my work again.

“It’s perfect,” Shane said. “Let’s send it to my editor right away.”

My hands trembled, and my stomach squirmed again.

“How long until we hear from them?” I hoped it would be soon. It would be all I could think about until we received an answer.

Shane shrugged. “He’ll probably read it over the weekend. I warned him that two other publishers want to read it.”

Even though it was Thursday, next week seemed eons away.

“He’s not going to be able to read it if we don’t send it,” Shane said.

I nodded. “Let’s do it.”

Shane attached the file to an email addressed to his publisher and told me to hit send.

My hands shook, and my breathing quickened, but I reached for the laptop keyboard and sent the file.

Shane and I high-fived after the ‘sent’ message appeared on the screen.

“Now we wait,” I said.

“Now we wait,” Shane agreed. “Let’s go ….”

Shane was interrupted by my phone. It was Victor.

“Hi, darling,” I said into the phone. “We just sent my article to the publisher.”

“That’s terrific,” Victor said. “I’m proud of you, sweetheart. And I’m glad you’re finished. The police want to speak to you about the video. Can you meet me here at my office in a half hour?”

“Sure,” I replied. “Are they arresting the two jocks?” They deserved it. I needed to do my part to ensure they thought twice before threatening and intimidating anyone else.

“They are still looking into the incident and decided they need your statement,” Victor said.

“What about Shane?” I asked and put my cell on speakerphone.

“They asked how to contact him,” Victor replied.

“I was going to go home and work on story ideas,” Shane told Victor. “But I can drive Daisy to your office to talk to the cops. She can go home with you afterward.”

“That sounds like a plan,” Victor agreed. “I’ll tell security you’re coming.”

Shane and I cleared off the counter and went out the front door to the street where his red Corvette Stingray was parked.

“Nice car,” I said as he opened the passenger door and helped me inside.

He walked around the front of the car, climbed behind the wheel, and put on a pair of aviator sunglasses.

“I like it,” he said and started the engine. “It’s not as great as Victor’s Lamborghini, but my family isn’t as wealthy as his.”

Shane’s words made me feel like I had to defend my fiancé.

“Victor has made a lot of money of his own in a short time,” I said.

“I’m sure he has,” Shane agreed as he pulled into traffic. “But it takes money to make money. He started with family money.”

I didn’t want to argue, and he was right. We drove the rest of the way to The Association in silence. Yet, it was a nice day, and I enjoyed the ride in the sleek, powerful sports car.

Security admitted us immediately. Shane’s head swiveled in several directions as a guard escorted us to Victor’s office.

“I’ve never been inside the complex before,” he said as he gawked at the main foyer’s high, painted ceiling.

“It’s fantastic, isn’t it?” I said.

“More than fantastic,” Shane said. “There’s so much of our history in these walls, both good and bad.”

Victor welcomed Shane warmly. “Nice to see you. Would you like something to drink? The police will be here any minute.”

“Nah, I’m good,” Shane replied.

Victor sat on his office couch and asked us to be seated. “Thank you again for assisting Daisy yesterday.”

“No problem,” Shane said. “I’m glad I was there before things got worse.”

“So am I,” Victor agreed.

The police arrived and joined us in Victor’s office. They took statements from me and Shane before telling us they would be in touch.

Shane stood. “Well, I’ll call you as soon as I hear from my publisher.”

I nodded. “Thanks.”

After Shane left, I cuddled next to Victor. He felt my body trembling.

“You’re nervous about the article,” he stated.

“Very,” I said. “How am I going to stand not knowing until next week if they’ll publish my story or not?”

“You need to take your mind off it,” Victor decided. “Let’s go on our trip.”

“When?” I asked.

He stood and helped me to my feet. “Right now.”