Post by matt on Aug 1, 2022 6:27:00 GMT -6
==========
Phoenix, Arizona
Off Camera
==========
The mind of The British Bombshell is also being plagued by thoughts of a startling revelation that was brought to her attention in recent weeks. Braddock was in London to watch her oldest daughter, Melinda Braddock, compete on the European independent circuits and it was there that she learned that Melinda and Clyde Sutter had rekindled their romantic relationship. This was a shock to Braddock’s system, because she knows for a fact that the pair broke up because of Sutter’s inability to control his anger, a problem that led him to physically abuse Melinda. The other issue is that Glory is convinced that Sutter has also sexually abused Melinda. Despite confronting her with this, Melinda has insisted that Sutter has never raped her, that Sutter has changed, and that they will continue to be romantically involved.
Obviously Glory’s change in attitude can be attributed, at least in some way, to this shocking news regarding her daughter. The beautiful blonde is deeply concerned about Melinda. She is worried about her daughter’s well-being. And even though Melinda, and even Glory’s own sister Julia, seems willing to at least consider giving Sutter a chance, Braddock herself is unwilling to believe the big monster has changed in any way, shape, or form. Unfortunately there is nothing Glory can do to change things. Sutter and Melinda are dating and she must find some way to deal with this.
The British Bombshell is walking the halls of The Footprint center shortly after Breakdown has come to its conclusion. The arena is nearly empty with the exception of a few SCW officials and arena officials staying behind to clean up. Braddock is dressed in denim jeans, sandals, and a purple t-shirt. Her long blonde hair is pulled into a ponytail in the back. She is seated on a black case in the center of the hall. Glory isn’t exactly paying attention to what is going on around her. Her mind is distracted, focused only on the problems going on in her personal life. It is for this reason that HE is able to sneak up on her so easily.
The “he” in question is Clyde Sutter. He is dressed in black dress pants, black dress shoes, and a white button up silk shirt. A smug confident smirk is plastered across the monster’s face. He finds it rather humorous that Glory doesn’t notice him. He used to work here, he used to work for this particular organization, for SCW. So some of those here at the arena recognized him. Now he works for another wrestling promotion, MWE. In fact, the last time Glory even saw Clyde Sutter was in MWE where Sutter nearly broke her in half. Now Sutter is once again dating Glory’s daughter. So to say that this meeting will be awkward is quite the understatement.
“Waiting on someone, Ms. Braddock?”
“Huh?!” Braddock’s attention is immediately perked. She looks up and narrows her eyes in an angry glare at the man who is dating her daughter. If looks could kill, Sutter would be dead right now. “What are you doing here?”
“It wasn’t difficult, Ms. Braddock. Many of those here in this promotion remembered me and did not raise any alarm bells. Besides,” he points a finger at Glory “you did invite me. Or do I need to produce my mobile phone that has your text message as evidence?”
There is a long, tense pause as The British Bombshell stares intensely at Sutter. After a few more tense moments Glory sighs and nods her head, relenting to Sutter. “You’re right, I did.”
“You and I haven’t exactly had the best of relationships, Ms. Braddock. When we first met you kicked me out of your wrestling school. Then after I broke up with your daughter you began spreading wild rumors about me raping her. I wouldn’t see you again until we met in the ring, twice, and both times I nearly broke you in half.” He snickers nastily. “So needless to say, Ms. Braddock, I was quite surprised to hear from you, especially receiving this invitation to attend SCW Breakdown in Phoenix so that we could discuss…something. You did not specify what you wanted to discuss.”
“Is that a problem?”
“Not exactly.” He shakes his head. “Except that it DOES force me to take time away from my business arrangement with The Page Family.”
“You mean your arrangement as their hired gun?”
“It is an honest, legitimate living, Ms. Braddock.” He sneers. “Now what do you want? Or did I waste my time?”
“You didn’t waste your time.” Glory says as she shakes her head. “It’s just that…” she sighs “...Melinda told me that you two were dating again.”
“Ah, so you were finally told.” He chuckles softly. It isn’t exactly a mean laugh but definitely not a nice one, either. “I am glad my dear, sweet Melinda finally told you about us. I hated keeping you in the dark for so long. A secret such as that should never be kept.”
“Wait, what?” Braddock stands up and approaches Sutter. “How the hell long have you been dating?!”
“That, Ms. Braddock, is actually quite complicated. You may not believe me, but I always cared for Melinda. I wasn’t exactly a saint, I still am not a saint, but I did care for her. And I did keep up with her after we broke up. I heard about her engagement with Archie Van Stanton.”
“Henry’s son.”
“Yes, him. I was genuinely happy for her. That was when we first made contact again. I reached out to her and congratulated her, simple as that. It was then that we renewed our friendship. And then when I heard about Archie being gunned down and murdered. I reached out again to help her in her time of need. I helped her as a friend.”
“So you just swooped in when she was emotionally vulnerable?” Glory snaps in an accusatory tone. Sutter shakes his head.
“Must you always think the worst of me?”
“You don’t do yourself any favors.”
“Fair enough. But no, I did not ‘swoop in’ as you put it. In fact, I did my best to maintain a friendship with Melinda. But we grew closer and closer. She was grateful for our friendship. And what started as a friendship grew into something more. She wanted to renew our romantic involvement. I suggested against it, knowing about my own past and knowing that YOU, Ms. Braddock, would not be in favor of it, but she insisted.”
“And I’m supposed to believe that?”
“I really don’t care if you believe me or not, Ms. Braddock. The fact is that it is true. And furthermore, all I want is peace. In fact, that is the only reason I bothered to come here to Phoenix to entertain this silly invitation of yours. I want there to be peace between us.”
“You want peace, Sutter?” Glory chuckles. “You must be joking?”
“I don’t have a sense of humor, Ms. Braddock. I am very serious.” Sutter states. Glory studies him closely and skeptically. She isn’t quite ready to believe him but something about the way he carries himself, the way he speaks to her today, seems to have a sense of sincerity that comes with it. Maybe she should humor him if only for a moment?
“Then answer this question…did you hurt Melinda?”
“Interesting question, Ms. Braddock. Your wording was carefully chosen, I’m sure, because I know what you really are asking of me. You want to know if I sexually assaulted your daughter when we dated the first time. Am I correct?” He asks. Glory nods her head. “I thought so. The answer is the same as Melinda told you, the same as I have told you. I never raped her.”
“I’m serious, Clyde, I…”
“AND I AM BEING SERIOUS TOO!” He shouts angrily. He is so intense that it even causes Glory to take a few steps back. Even Sutter himself takes a few steps back. It is almost as if he realizes that he is about to explode. He takes a few deep breaths to calm himself. Braddock can sense that the big man is slowly but surely calming himself. “Apologies, Ms. Braddock…but I assure you, I did not sexually assault your daughter.”
“You did hit her.”
“Yes, I admit that I did hit her. That was a mistake on my part, when I could not control my rage. I may never live that down. But I assure you I did not rape her. I would never rape her. I won’t hurt her ever again.”
“How can I be so sure of any of this?”
“I have been taking anger management classes.” Sutter states stoically. “They have been very beneficial in helping me to focus and control my rage, so that I take out my rage on my opponents in the ring, not on my loved ones outside the ring.”
“I’m still not sure I admit you.” Braddock sighs and shakes her head. “Even with the anger management I’m still not sure I can trust you.” Braddock pulls at her hair. “She’s my daughter, mate. I can’t help it but I’m protective of her.”
“I understand.”
“But I guess…I guess I am willing to at least give you a chance.” She extends a hand, very reluctantly. Sutter smirks but nods his head and accepts the handshake.
“A chance is all I ask, Ms. Braddock…a chance to prove you wrong, to prove that I am worthy of your daughter.”
“Don’t get ahead of yourself.” Glory says, rolling her eyes. “I have pretty high standards.”
“With all due respect, Ms. Braddock, I believe you should open your mind to the possibility that perhaps you do not know everything. There is still much for you to learn.”
“What are you babbling about now, Sutter?” Glory asks. He turns and walks off. He motions for her to follow him and reluctantly she obliges. She is actually surprised at herself that is following Sutter, as if she actually trusts him. But something about his demeanor tells her that she can trust him. Braddock follows Sutter to the exit of The Footprint Center. He steps through the exit door and holds it open for Glory. She exits as well, now she finds herself outside next to Sutter. He points up into the dark Phoenix sky.
“Look up at the stars. It is a big universe, isn’t it?”
“Yes, I suppose it is.”
“Yet at the same time it is a very small universe when you start to think of how connected we are. I learned that myself recently.”
“You’re beginning to sound crazy, mate.”
“Shaddup and listen.” He growls. Sutter turns and looks directly into Glory’s eyes. “You kicked me out of your wrestling school, Ms. Braddock. And you had used your influence to try and blackball me from any and all major wrestling promotions. Had it not been for Mason Van Stanton, I would not have completed my training and I would not have attracted the attention of any promotion. Now did you ever stop and think why Van Stanton would give a damn about me?”
“That’s easy, mate. He knew I hated you and he wanted to stick it to me.”
“That’s what I thought as well. But as it stands we are both wrong.” Sutter chuckles. “See, I recently learned the identity of my mother. Today she is known as Autumn Van Stanton, Mason’s sister-in-law.”
“That makes Mason your…uncle?” Glory asks. Sutter nods his head.
“Correct. You may think of me as a hired gun, a mercenary, but the money I make off the Page sisters enables me to be well connected and well informed. As a matter of fact, I am aware of another problem you are having, Ms. Braddock.”
“I have no problems, Sutter.” She sighs. “Nothing that you could help me with, at least.”
“I’m offering my advice merely as a way of peace. We are at peace now, correct? I am dating your daughter. I may as well be family now. So…mom…let me help.” He grins knowingly. Braddock shakes her head.
“I can handle things myself, thank you very much.”
“Very well. I accomplished what I came here to do. I buried the hatchet. It may be a tense peace, and perhaps we do not fully trust one another, but at least there is a fragile peace between us. I will say this to you, Ms. Braddock, and take my advice or leave it, it does not matter to me. Do NOT trust anyone.”
The British Bombshell watches as Clyde Sutter turns and walks off. Her eyes never leave Sutter as he slowly disappears into the night. She wants to simply dismiss his advice but she is finding it difficult to do so. What does he mean by ‘do not trust anyone’? The words are eerily reminiscent of the warning Jamie Ryan gave Glory weeks earlier. Does Sutter know of Glory’s corporate problems? That sounds impossible. But still, whether he knows or not, the advice is sound. She has been betrayed before. She could be betrayed again.
==========
Charlotte, NC
Off Camera
==========
When it rains it pours. This is a common phrase that implies when one bad thing happens, expect several more bad things to happen very soon and all at once, almost like a deluge. This phrase is almost the gospel truth lately when it comes to the personal and professional problems currently going on in the life of Glory Braddock.
Unfortunately her issues are worst on the personal level. A month ago Braddock was told by Jamie Ryan, the niece of one of her company’s board of directors, that factions within her company are yet again plotting a hostile takeover, an overthrow of Glory Braddock. Her mind tells her that these are just wild rumors and nothing more. But betrayal happened once before. The Board of Directors did plot against her once. Why wouldn’t they do it again? That doubt is enough to drive Glory Braddock insane. As if that wasn’t enough to make her feel crazy, it was a few weeks ago when Braddock learned that her oldest daughter, Melinda Braddock, had renewed a romantic relationship with Clyde Sutter, a man Glory personally despises. Braddock has recently met with both Melinda and Sutter in order to try and ease her mind. Despite assurances from Melinda and Sutter that he is a changed man, The British Bombshell still feels uncertain around him. She still is unwilling to fully trust him. Unfortunately, there is nothing she can do about this; he is dating her daughter and she cannot stop it.
And yet there is something that she did take away from her recent meeting with Clyde Sutter. He issued a cryptic warning not to trust anyone. Clyde did not indicate that he knew anything about her corporate problems but the words did remind her about the warning she had received from Jamie Ryan. Glory is trusting Aurora Alan, a woman whose brother was once indicted on federal charges for white collar crimes, a woman whose brother had multiple times tried to subvert Glory and take over her company from within. Aurora Alan, the sister of Matthew Alan, had always been the nicer, more honest and trustworthy of the Alan siblings. Braddock put her in place as the CEO because the factions within the board of directors who wanted Glory out were loyal to the Alan family. It was Braddock’s logic that Aurora would keep the Board of Directors happy while Glory could remain owner of the company. Trust no one. Should she really trust Aurora Alan, a woman who was raised in a family of corporate crooks?
The British Bombshell is making a beeline down the halls of her company’s corporate headquarters in Charlotte, North Carolina. She is dressed in a royal purple maxi skirt, sandals, and a white lace blouse with quarter length sleeves that shows off just a little midriff. Her long blonde hair hangs straight and unrestrained to past the shoulders. A look of determination that would scare even the toughest of men is etched across her lovely face. Most of the employees present today are indeed rather frightened, or at the very least nervous, as they see Braddock storming through corporate headquarters. It isn’t often that they see the head bitch in charge, the owner of the company gracing them with her presence. And usually when she shows up it is nothing good.
Glory makes her way into a waiting room. A receptionist is there at a desk that sits adjacent to a door that is marked “Alan”. Braddock marches up to the receptionist. The receptionist, a young lady in her twenties with brown hair, doesn’t seem to notice much. She notices that someone is there but she doesn’t bother to look up and see who it is. “Yes, may I help you?”
“Ahem…” Glory clears her throat loudly to get the attention of the receptionist. She looks up and immediately her eyes grow wide and her face goes pale. Her jaw nearly hits the floor.
“Oh, uh, Ms. Braddock, I had no idea you were going to be here today. I mean, um, you aren’t scheduled to be here today. Errr, I mean…”
“There isn’t a problem with me being here at the office of the company I own, is it?” Glory asks in a tremendously sarcastic tone. “I DO still have an office here, don’t I?”
“Uh, yea…yes, of course. Should I…uh…” clearly the poor girl is nervous “...should I let everyone know you are in the office today?”
“No!” She snaps back at the young girl. “I won’t be here long. I just need to speak to Aurora.”
“Ms. Alan?”
“Is there anyone else working here named Aurora?”
“Uh, n…no, I guess not. But she’s taking her lunch break and doesn’t want to see anyone.”
“So she is in her office?” Glory asks as she points to Aurora’s office door.
“Yes, Ms. Braddock, but…”
“Well she can make time for me!”
Glory storms on past the desk before the receptionist can protest. She pushes the door open and steps inside in the opulent corporate office of Aurora Alan. An intensely furious rage is in the eyes of Glory Braddock. She spots Aurora Alan sitting at her desk. She is wearing navy blue dress pants, matching flats, a white silk blouse, and matching navy blue jacket. Aurora immediately sits up straight upon seeing Glory enter. She looks surprised to see the majority owner there in the middle of her office. This was definitely unexpected and Glory definitely caught her off guard.
“Glory? What are you doing here? You weren’t supposed to be here today.”
“Yeah, yeah, I already went through that song and dance with your receptionist.” Braddock says as she marches over and finds a seat near Aurora at the desk. “Who the hell is she anyway? I don’t recognize her.”
“You don’t recognize anyone here at the offices, Glory.” Aurora says with a sly grin. “You hated keeping office hours. You barely spend any time here, remember?”
“So she’s been here awhile then?”
“No,” Aurora shakes her admit “I admit, she is a new hire. I had to let my other receptionist go when I noticed she was stealing from the company.”
“Stealing from the company?!” Glory’s eyes light up. Aurora immediately sets to calming her down.
“It was just small, petty amounts, nothing much. But still, I had to fire her. This one I think will work out great. Her name is Amber.”
“She’d better!” Glory exclaims angrily. “I can’t believe we had someone stealing from the company!”
“Calm down, Glory. Seriously, it wasn’t that big of a deal. But what is a big deal is you. What are you doing here?” Aurora asks. “You have a date in Vegas in the next few days. I doubt you made this side trip just to judge my new hire.”
“Yes, I do have a good reason for stopping by. I suppose I could have called and settled this over the phone but I preferred to do it in person and unannounced. I wanted to take you by surprise.”
“You certainly did that.” Aurora rolls her eyes.
“Good. Now tell me, is anyone listening?”
“No…unless Amber has really good hearing…”
“So the room isn’t bugged?”
“Are you seriously asking me that?” Aurora seems genuinely confused by this question. Glory just nods her head. Aurora sighs and shakes her head. “No, the room isn’t bugged. No one is listening in to us right now.”
“Are you sure?”
“I’m certain of it!” Aurora sighs out of frustration. “Seriously, Glory, you sound very paranoid. What the hell is wrong?”
“It’s just that…” Glory pauses and thinks of the warning from Jamie Ryan, the advice from Clyde Sutter, trust no one “...it’s just that I’m not sure who I can trust.”
“You can trust me, Glory.”
“Can I?”
“Damn it, Glory, pull yourself together!” Aurora exclaims with a mix of anger and frustration. “You’re beginning to sound crazy! You trust me, Glory. You sold me a fifteen percent share of your company. You put me in charge as CEO of your company. A year ago you wouldn’t have done that for anyone.”
Aurora stares deep into Glory’s eyes. She can tell that The British Bombshell is upset about something, she just wishes she would come clean about it. A few moments later and Glory begins to cry a little. Aurora produces a few tissues and hands them over to Glory who nods her head in appreciation as she uses them to dry her eyes.
“Sorry, Aurora. I guess I am being a little paranoid. It’s just so much is going wrong lately. Between the crap going on in SCW and then finding about my daughter dating Sutter again and now this crap about the board of directors.”
“What is going on with the board?” Aurora asks curiously. “The last time I checked you were getting along with them famously. They even threw you a big party, in your honor.”
“Yeah and that’s where all this crap started. You know Jamie Ryan?”
“No, should I…” Aurora pauses to think for a moment “...wait, Ryan…as in Floyd Ryan?”
“Yes. Floyd Ryan, member of our board of directors, has a niece named Jamie. I met her at the party. She seemed nice enough and wanted to meet with me again. I didn’t see any problem with it so I met her again. Then she told me that factions within the board of directors are plotting against me.”
“That’s insane.” Aurora insists. “Like I said, the board loves you. At meetings they always have nothing but positive things to say about you. Believe me, if they were to say anything negative about you, they would feel comfortable enough saying it in my presence. Look at who my brother is.” Aurora says chuckling softly. Glory nods her head.
“True enough.”
“They genuinely believe that you have turned over a new leaf. I cannot believe that they would ever try to betray you.”
“It just bothers me, you know? They did it once before. They took control of the company and handed it over to Henry Van Stanton, based on Henry’s claims that I was mentally unstable.” She wipes a tear from her eye with the tissues. “His only basis was the fact that I acknowledged my mentor, Aphrodite Noel, as my mother. I had spent over ten years without a mother figure in my life, Aurora. My biological mother had abandoned me. Aphrodite was very close to me. She taught me how to endure backstage politics, something my father did not teach me. She also taught me how to manage corporate life after I bought this company. So is it any stretch that I might start to view her as a mother figure when she was really more of a mother than my actual mother ever was?”
“When you put it that way, no. Did you ever get the chance to explain this to the board or Henry?”
“Henry knew damn well my explanation, he just didn’t care. He needed an excuse so that take control of the company from me and mental instability was his excuse. And the Board of Directors at the time was fiercely loyal to your brother. But your brother was under investigation for federal crimes, so they couldn’t put him in charge. They settled for Henry.”
“I had no idea…” Aurora’s voice trails off.
“When I regained control of the company I vowed to never let that kind of a hostile takeover happen again. As a result I did some terrible things to innocent people. I am ashamed of who I became in my quest for revenge. Now these rumors about the board trying to take me out…” she shakes her head “...it’s bringing her back.”
“Bringing who back?”
“The person I had become. The person who did those horrible things. I’m tempted to go back to that dark place, Aurora and I really do not want to.”
“Glory…” Aurora says in a low tone “...you realize how that sounds?”
“I know!” She exclaims. “It sounds insane! And honestly, right now, I feel as if I am going insane! Everything is falling apart around me, Aurora! I’m losing my daughter to a monster…who the hell knows when my students, Amelia and Fiona, will be back in action…it seems as if I am losing everything. Except this company. I still have this company and I had that one thing to hold onto. If all else failed, I still had the company. But then I learned that there is a chance I could lose that too?” Braddock shakes her head. “It would be so easy, y’know?”
“What would be easy?”
“Just to give in. Just to be ruthless and cutthroat like Aphrodite taught me. Be that person Aphrodite created. That person would get rid of those board members conspiring against me. But…”
“...but you’re not that person anymore?” Aurora asks. Glory nods her head in confirmation.
“That’s right. I am not that person anymore. I don’t want to be that person anymore. I want to be the person my dad raised me to be, a good person who does things the right way. In fact, just last week in Phoenix I met with Clyde Sutter…the monster my daughter is dating…”
“And what happened?”
“...we buried the hatchet.” Glory smiles warmly as she thinks back to just last week when she was speaking with Sutter. “It felt good. I don’t trust him, he’ll have to earn my trust, but it felt good to do it the right way. That’s who I want to be.”
“Good. Just be that person, ok? Do not let all of these problems overwhelm you. You can overcome it without being cutthroat, without taking shortcuts.”
“But taking the shortcut is so tempting right now.” Glory admits with a sigh. “I have tried for so long that it is tiresome. Like I said, I want to give up. I am tempted to give up.”
“Look, just calm down.” Aurora stands up and approaches Glory. Glory stands up and the two embrace in a tight hug. “You brought me in to help and I will help. Do you trust me?”
“Yes.”
“Good. Then let me help. If it will ease your mind I will look into this. I will see if there is any truth to these rumors. I’m pretty sure I can convince one of the board members to talk.”
“Thanks, Aurora.” She smiles.
“Don’t mention it.”
“Just one thing…”
“What’s that?” Aurora asks as they break the embrace.
“Do not trust anyone.”
“You don’t have to tell me, Glory. Remember who I grew up with…my brother, Matthew, who was indicted on federal charges and my sister Jennifer who SHOULD HAVE BEEN indicted on federal charges but covered her tracks better…” Aurora smirks “...I know better than anyone else that you cannot trust anyone. But these board members you are worried about, they trust me immensely. If there is any sort of plot, they’ll tell me. But honestly I think you’re just worrying yourself over nothing.” Aurora places a hand on Glory’s shoulder. “In fact, maybe you should start seeing that therapist again.”
“The psychiatrist you mean?” Glory shakes her head. “No, I’d rather not.”
“He helped you once before.”
“He did help me, I admit that. But I was forced to go by the same board of directors who took control of the company from me, in order to satisfy themselves that I wasn’t insane. If I go back, who is to say that someone won’t pick up on that? Who is to say that word of me going to see a therapist won’t get out into the public? I don’t want the entire world thinking I’m insane.” Braddock’s eyes grow wide. “I am NOT insane!”
“I know, you’re not insane.” Aurora gently rubs her shoulders to calm her down. The wild look on Glory’s face slowly goes away. “It was just a suggestion. Ok?”
“Uh, yeah, right. I’ll take it under advisement.” She turns and walks towards the office door, preparing to exit. “Sorry about all of this. I didn’t mean to cause any trouble.”
“No apology is necessary, Glory. Just help yourself, ok? Let me worry about the company.”
“Thanks.”
Glory Braddock steps outside the office. Immediately she turns to look at the receptionist, who once again cowers in fear upon seeing The British Bombshell. Glory smiles sheepishly.
“Sorry, Amber.”
“Uh…ok…”
Braddock sighs as she walks off. She hopes that she has found a friend in Aurora who can help ease her mind. Still, a nagging part of her thinks that she just made things worse. Can she really trust Aurora Alan?
Phoenix, Arizona
Off Camera
==========
The mind of The British Bombshell is also being plagued by thoughts of a startling revelation that was brought to her attention in recent weeks. Braddock was in London to watch her oldest daughter, Melinda Braddock, compete on the European independent circuits and it was there that she learned that Melinda and Clyde Sutter had rekindled their romantic relationship. This was a shock to Braddock’s system, because she knows for a fact that the pair broke up because of Sutter’s inability to control his anger, a problem that led him to physically abuse Melinda. The other issue is that Glory is convinced that Sutter has also sexually abused Melinda. Despite confronting her with this, Melinda has insisted that Sutter has never raped her, that Sutter has changed, and that they will continue to be romantically involved.
Obviously Glory’s change in attitude can be attributed, at least in some way, to this shocking news regarding her daughter. The beautiful blonde is deeply concerned about Melinda. She is worried about her daughter’s well-being. And even though Melinda, and even Glory’s own sister Julia, seems willing to at least consider giving Sutter a chance, Braddock herself is unwilling to believe the big monster has changed in any way, shape, or form. Unfortunately there is nothing Glory can do to change things. Sutter and Melinda are dating and she must find some way to deal with this.
The British Bombshell is walking the halls of The Footprint center shortly after Breakdown has come to its conclusion. The arena is nearly empty with the exception of a few SCW officials and arena officials staying behind to clean up. Braddock is dressed in denim jeans, sandals, and a purple t-shirt. Her long blonde hair is pulled into a ponytail in the back. She is seated on a black case in the center of the hall. Glory isn’t exactly paying attention to what is going on around her. Her mind is distracted, focused only on the problems going on in her personal life. It is for this reason that HE is able to sneak up on her so easily.
The “he” in question is Clyde Sutter. He is dressed in black dress pants, black dress shoes, and a white button up silk shirt. A smug confident smirk is plastered across the monster’s face. He finds it rather humorous that Glory doesn’t notice him. He used to work here, he used to work for this particular organization, for SCW. So some of those here at the arena recognized him. Now he works for another wrestling promotion, MWE. In fact, the last time Glory even saw Clyde Sutter was in MWE where Sutter nearly broke her in half. Now Sutter is once again dating Glory’s daughter. So to say that this meeting will be awkward is quite the understatement.
“Waiting on someone, Ms. Braddock?”
“Huh?!” Braddock’s attention is immediately perked. She looks up and narrows her eyes in an angry glare at the man who is dating her daughter. If looks could kill, Sutter would be dead right now. “What are you doing here?”
“It wasn’t difficult, Ms. Braddock. Many of those here in this promotion remembered me and did not raise any alarm bells. Besides,” he points a finger at Glory “you did invite me. Or do I need to produce my mobile phone that has your text message as evidence?”
There is a long, tense pause as The British Bombshell stares intensely at Sutter. After a few more tense moments Glory sighs and nods her head, relenting to Sutter. “You’re right, I did.”
“You and I haven’t exactly had the best of relationships, Ms. Braddock. When we first met you kicked me out of your wrestling school. Then after I broke up with your daughter you began spreading wild rumors about me raping her. I wouldn’t see you again until we met in the ring, twice, and both times I nearly broke you in half.” He snickers nastily. “So needless to say, Ms. Braddock, I was quite surprised to hear from you, especially receiving this invitation to attend SCW Breakdown in Phoenix so that we could discuss…something. You did not specify what you wanted to discuss.”
“Is that a problem?”
“Not exactly.” He shakes his head. “Except that it DOES force me to take time away from my business arrangement with The Page Family.”
“You mean your arrangement as their hired gun?”
“It is an honest, legitimate living, Ms. Braddock.” He sneers. “Now what do you want? Or did I waste my time?”
“You didn’t waste your time.” Glory says as she shakes her head. “It’s just that…” she sighs “...Melinda told me that you two were dating again.”
“Ah, so you were finally told.” He chuckles softly. It isn’t exactly a mean laugh but definitely not a nice one, either. “I am glad my dear, sweet Melinda finally told you about us. I hated keeping you in the dark for so long. A secret such as that should never be kept.”
“Wait, what?” Braddock stands up and approaches Sutter. “How the hell long have you been dating?!”
“That, Ms. Braddock, is actually quite complicated. You may not believe me, but I always cared for Melinda. I wasn’t exactly a saint, I still am not a saint, but I did care for her. And I did keep up with her after we broke up. I heard about her engagement with Archie Van Stanton.”
“Henry’s son.”
“Yes, him. I was genuinely happy for her. That was when we first made contact again. I reached out to her and congratulated her, simple as that. It was then that we renewed our friendship. And then when I heard about Archie being gunned down and murdered. I reached out again to help her in her time of need. I helped her as a friend.”
“So you just swooped in when she was emotionally vulnerable?” Glory snaps in an accusatory tone. Sutter shakes his head.
“Must you always think the worst of me?”
“You don’t do yourself any favors.”
“Fair enough. But no, I did not ‘swoop in’ as you put it. In fact, I did my best to maintain a friendship with Melinda. But we grew closer and closer. She was grateful for our friendship. And what started as a friendship grew into something more. She wanted to renew our romantic involvement. I suggested against it, knowing about my own past and knowing that YOU, Ms. Braddock, would not be in favor of it, but she insisted.”
“And I’m supposed to believe that?”
“I really don’t care if you believe me or not, Ms. Braddock. The fact is that it is true. And furthermore, all I want is peace. In fact, that is the only reason I bothered to come here to Phoenix to entertain this silly invitation of yours. I want there to be peace between us.”
“You want peace, Sutter?” Glory chuckles. “You must be joking?”
“I don’t have a sense of humor, Ms. Braddock. I am very serious.” Sutter states. Glory studies him closely and skeptically. She isn’t quite ready to believe him but something about the way he carries himself, the way he speaks to her today, seems to have a sense of sincerity that comes with it. Maybe she should humor him if only for a moment?
“Then answer this question…did you hurt Melinda?”
“Interesting question, Ms. Braddock. Your wording was carefully chosen, I’m sure, because I know what you really are asking of me. You want to know if I sexually assaulted your daughter when we dated the first time. Am I correct?” He asks. Glory nods her head. “I thought so. The answer is the same as Melinda told you, the same as I have told you. I never raped her.”
“I’m serious, Clyde, I…”
“AND I AM BEING SERIOUS TOO!” He shouts angrily. He is so intense that it even causes Glory to take a few steps back. Even Sutter himself takes a few steps back. It is almost as if he realizes that he is about to explode. He takes a few deep breaths to calm himself. Braddock can sense that the big man is slowly but surely calming himself. “Apologies, Ms. Braddock…but I assure you, I did not sexually assault your daughter.”
“You did hit her.”
“Yes, I admit that I did hit her. That was a mistake on my part, when I could not control my rage. I may never live that down. But I assure you I did not rape her. I would never rape her. I won’t hurt her ever again.”
“How can I be so sure of any of this?”
“I have been taking anger management classes.” Sutter states stoically. “They have been very beneficial in helping me to focus and control my rage, so that I take out my rage on my opponents in the ring, not on my loved ones outside the ring.”
“I’m still not sure I admit you.” Braddock sighs and shakes her head. “Even with the anger management I’m still not sure I can trust you.” Braddock pulls at her hair. “She’s my daughter, mate. I can’t help it but I’m protective of her.”
“I understand.”
“But I guess…I guess I am willing to at least give you a chance.” She extends a hand, very reluctantly. Sutter smirks but nods his head and accepts the handshake.
“A chance is all I ask, Ms. Braddock…a chance to prove you wrong, to prove that I am worthy of your daughter.”
“Don’t get ahead of yourself.” Glory says, rolling her eyes. “I have pretty high standards.”
“With all due respect, Ms. Braddock, I believe you should open your mind to the possibility that perhaps you do not know everything. There is still much for you to learn.”
“What are you babbling about now, Sutter?” Glory asks. He turns and walks off. He motions for her to follow him and reluctantly she obliges. She is actually surprised at herself that is following Sutter, as if she actually trusts him. But something about his demeanor tells her that she can trust him. Braddock follows Sutter to the exit of The Footprint Center. He steps through the exit door and holds it open for Glory. She exits as well, now she finds herself outside next to Sutter. He points up into the dark Phoenix sky.
“Look up at the stars. It is a big universe, isn’t it?”
“Yes, I suppose it is.”
“Yet at the same time it is a very small universe when you start to think of how connected we are. I learned that myself recently.”
“You’re beginning to sound crazy, mate.”
“Shaddup and listen.” He growls. Sutter turns and looks directly into Glory’s eyes. “You kicked me out of your wrestling school, Ms. Braddock. And you had used your influence to try and blackball me from any and all major wrestling promotions. Had it not been for Mason Van Stanton, I would not have completed my training and I would not have attracted the attention of any promotion. Now did you ever stop and think why Van Stanton would give a damn about me?”
“That’s easy, mate. He knew I hated you and he wanted to stick it to me.”
“That’s what I thought as well. But as it stands we are both wrong.” Sutter chuckles. “See, I recently learned the identity of my mother. Today she is known as Autumn Van Stanton, Mason’s sister-in-law.”
“That makes Mason your…uncle?” Glory asks. Sutter nods his head.
“Correct. You may think of me as a hired gun, a mercenary, but the money I make off the Page sisters enables me to be well connected and well informed. As a matter of fact, I am aware of another problem you are having, Ms. Braddock.”
“I have no problems, Sutter.” She sighs. “Nothing that you could help me with, at least.”
“I’m offering my advice merely as a way of peace. We are at peace now, correct? I am dating your daughter. I may as well be family now. So…mom…let me help.” He grins knowingly. Braddock shakes her head.
“I can handle things myself, thank you very much.”
“Very well. I accomplished what I came here to do. I buried the hatchet. It may be a tense peace, and perhaps we do not fully trust one another, but at least there is a fragile peace between us. I will say this to you, Ms. Braddock, and take my advice or leave it, it does not matter to me. Do NOT trust anyone.”
The British Bombshell watches as Clyde Sutter turns and walks off. Her eyes never leave Sutter as he slowly disappears into the night. She wants to simply dismiss his advice but she is finding it difficult to do so. What does he mean by ‘do not trust anyone’? The words are eerily reminiscent of the warning Jamie Ryan gave Glory weeks earlier. Does Sutter know of Glory’s corporate problems? That sounds impossible. But still, whether he knows or not, the advice is sound. She has been betrayed before. She could be betrayed again.
==========
Charlotte, NC
Off Camera
==========
When it rains it pours. This is a common phrase that implies when one bad thing happens, expect several more bad things to happen very soon and all at once, almost like a deluge. This phrase is almost the gospel truth lately when it comes to the personal and professional problems currently going on in the life of Glory Braddock.
Unfortunately her issues are worst on the personal level. A month ago Braddock was told by Jamie Ryan, the niece of one of her company’s board of directors, that factions within her company are yet again plotting a hostile takeover, an overthrow of Glory Braddock. Her mind tells her that these are just wild rumors and nothing more. But betrayal happened once before. The Board of Directors did plot against her once. Why wouldn’t they do it again? That doubt is enough to drive Glory Braddock insane. As if that wasn’t enough to make her feel crazy, it was a few weeks ago when Braddock learned that her oldest daughter, Melinda Braddock, had renewed a romantic relationship with Clyde Sutter, a man Glory personally despises. Braddock has recently met with both Melinda and Sutter in order to try and ease her mind. Despite assurances from Melinda and Sutter that he is a changed man, The British Bombshell still feels uncertain around him. She still is unwilling to fully trust him. Unfortunately, there is nothing she can do about this; he is dating her daughter and she cannot stop it.
And yet there is something that she did take away from her recent meeting with Clyde Sutter. He issued a cryptic warning not to trust anyone. Clyde did not indicate that he knew anything about her corporate problems but the words did remind her about the warning she had received from Jamie Ryan. Glory is trusting Aurora Alan, a woman whose brother was once indicted on federal charges for white collar crimes, a woman whose brother had multiple times tried to subvert Glory and take over her company from within. Aurora Alan, the sister of Matthew Alan, had always been the nicer, more honest and trustworthy of the Alan siblings. Braddock put her in place as the CEO because the factions within the board of directors who wanted Glory out were loyal to the Alan family. It was Braddock’s logic that Aurora would keep the Board of Directors happy while Glory could remain owner of the company. Trust no one. Should she really trust Aurora Alan, a woman who was raised in a family of corporate crooks?
The British Bombshell is making a beeline down the halls of her company’s corporate headquarters in Charlotte, North Carolina. She is dressed in a royal purple maxi skirt, sandals, and a white lace blouse with quarter length sleeves that shows off just a little midriff. Her long blonde hair hangs straight and unrestrained to past the shoulders. A look of determination that would scare even the toughest of men is etched across her lovely face. Most of the employees present today are indeed rather frightened, or at the very least nervous, as they see Braddock storming through corporate headquarters. It isn’t often that they see the head bitch in charge, the owner of the company gracing them with her presence. And usually when she shows up it is nothing good.
Glory makes her way into a waiting room. A receptionist is there at a desk that sits adjacent to a door that is marked “Alan”. Braddock marches up to the receptionist. The receptionist, a young lady in her twenties with brown hair, doesn’t seem to notice much. She notices that someone is there but she doesn’t bother to look up and see who it is. “Yes, may I help you?”
“Ahem…” Glory clears her throat loudly to get the attention of the receptionist. She looks up and immediately her eyes grow wide and her face goes pale. Her jaw nearly hits the floor.
“Oh, uh, Ms. Braddock, I had no idea you were going to be here today. I mean, um, you aren’t scheduled to be here today. Errr, I mean…”
“There isn’t a problem with me being here at the office of the company I own, is it?” Glory asks in a tremendously sarcastic tone. “I DO still have an office here, don’t I?”
“Uh, yea…yes, of course. Should I…uh…” clearly the poor girl is nervous “...should I let everyone know you are in the office today?”
“No!” She snaps back at the young girl. “I won’t be here long. I just need to speak to Aurora.”
“Ms. Alan?”
“Is there anyone else working here named Aurora?”
“Uh, n…no, I guess not. But she’s taking her lunch break and doesn’t want to see anyone.”
“So she is in her office?” Glory asks as she points to Aurora’s office door.
“Yes, Ms. Braddock, but…”
“Well she can make time for me!”
Glory storms on past the desk before the receptionist can protest. She pushes the door open and steps inside in the opulent corporate office of Aurora Alan. An intensely furious rage is in the eyes of Glory Braddock. She spots Aurora Alan sitting at her desk. She is wearing navy blue dress pants, matching flats, a white silk blouse, and matching navy blue jacket. Aurora immediately sits up straight upon seeing Glory enter. She looks surprised to see the majority owner there in the middle of her office. This was definitely unexpected and Glory definitely caught her off guard.
“Glory? What are you doing here? You weren’t supposed to be here today.”
“Yeah, yeah, I already went through that song and dance with your receptionist.” Braddock says as she marches over and finds a seat near Aurora at the desk. “Who the hell is she anyway? I don’t recognize her.”
“You don’t recognize anyone here at the offices, Glory.” Aurora says with a sly grin. “You hated keeping office hours. You barely spend any time here, remember?”
“So she’s been here awhile then?”
“No,” Aurora shakes her admit “I admit, she is a new hire. I had to let my other receptionist go when I noticed she was stealing from the company.”
“Stealing from the company?!” Glory’s eyes light up. Aurora immediately sets to calming her down.
“It was just small, petty amounts, nothing much. But still, I had to fire her. This one I think will work out great. Her name is Amber.”
“She’d better!” Glory exclaims angrily. “I can’t believe we had someone stealing from the company!”
“Calm down, Glory. Seriously, it wasn’t that big of a deal. But what is a big deal is you. What are you doing here?” Aurora asks. “You have a date in Vegas in the next few days. I doubt you made this side trip just to judge my new hire.”
“Yes, I do have a good reason for stopping by. I suppose I could have called and settled this over the phone but I preferred to do it in person and unannounced. I wanted to take you by surprise.”
“You certainly did that.” Aurora rolls her eyes.
“Good. Now tell me, is anyone listening?”
“No…unless Amber has really good hearing…”
“So the room isn’t bugged?”
“Are you seriously asking me that?” Aurora seems genuinely confused by this question. Glory just nods her head. Aurora sighs and shakes her head. “No, the room isn’t bugged. No one is listening in to us right now.”
“Are you sure?”
“I’m certain of it!” Aurora sighs out of frustration. “Seriously, Glory, you sound very paranoid. What the hell is wrong?”
“It’s just that…” Glory pauses and thinks of the warning from Jamie Ryan, the advice from Clyde Sutter, trust no one “...it’s just that I’m not sure who I can trust.”
“You can trust me, Glory.”
“Can I?”
“Damn it, Glory, pull yourself together!” Aurora exclaims with a mix of anger and frustration. “You’re beginning to sound crazy! You trust me, Glory. You sold me a fifteen percent share of your company. You put me in charge as CEO of your company. A year ago you wouldn’t have done that for anyone.”
Aurora stares deep into Glory’s eyes. She can tell that The British Bombshell is upset about something, she just wishes she would come clean about it. A few moments later and Glory begins to cry a little. Aurora produces a few tissues and hands them over to Glory who nods her head in appreciation as she uses them to dry her eyes.
“Sorry, Aurora. I guess I am being a little paranoid. It’s just so much is going wrong lately. Between the crap going on in SCW and then finding about my daughter dating Sutter again and now this crap about the board of directors.”
“What is going on with the board?” Aurora asks curiously. “The last time I checked you were getting along with them famously. They even threw you a big party, in your honor.”
“Yeah and that’s where all this crap started. You know Jamie Ryan?”
“No, should I…” Aurora pauses to think for a moment “...wait, Ryan…as in Floyd Ryan?”
“Yes. Floyd Ryan, member of our board of directors, has a niece named Jamie. I met her at the party. She seemed nice enough and wanted to meet with me again. I didn’t see any problem with it so I met her again. Then she told me that factions within the board of directors are plotting against me.”
“That’s insane.” Aurora insists. “Like I said, the board loves you. At meetings they always have nothing but positive things to say about you. Believe me, if they were to say anything negative about you, they would feel comfortable enough saying it in my presence. Look at who my brother is.” Aurora says chuckling softly. Glory nods her head.
“True enough.”
“They genuinely believe that you have turned over a new leaf. I cannot believe that they would ever try to betray you.”
“It just bothers me, you know? They did it once before. They took control of the company and handed it over to Henry Van Stanton, based on Henry’s claims that I was mentally unstable.” She wipes a tear from her eye with the tissues. “His only basis was the fact that I acknowledged my mentor, Aphrodite Noel, as my mother. I had spent over ten years without a mother figure in my life, Aurora. My biological mother had abandoned me. Aphrodite was very close to me. She taught me how to endure backstage politics, something my father did not teach me. She also taught me how to manage corporate life after I bought this company. So is it any stretch that I might start to view her as a mother figure when she was really more of a mother than my actual mother ever was?”
“When you put it that way, no. Did you ever get the chance to explain this to the board or Henry?”
“Henry knew damn well my explanation, he just didn’t care. He needed an excuse so that take control of the company from me and mental instability was his excuse. And the Board of Directors at the time was fiercely loyal to your brother. But your brother was under investigation for federal crimes, so they couldn’t put him in charge. They settled for Henry.”
“I had no idea…” Aurora’s voice trails off.
“When I regained control of the company I vowed to never let that kind of a hostile takeover happen again. As a result I did some terrible things to innocent people. I am ashamed of who I became in my quest for revenge. Now these rumors about the board trying to take me out…” she shakes her head “...it’s bringing her back.”
“Bringing who back?”
“The person I had become. The person who did those horrible things. I’m tempted to go back to that dark place, Aurora and I really do not want to.”
“Glory…” Aurora says in a low tone “...you realize how that sounds?”
“I know!” She exclaims. “It sounds insane! And honestly, right now, I feel as if I am going insane! Everything is falling apart around me, Aurora! I’m losing my daughter to a monster…who the hell knows when my students, Amelia and Fiona, will be back in action…it seems as if I am losing everything. Except this company. I still have this company and I had that one thing to hold onto. If all else failed, I still had the company. But then I learned that there is a chance I could lose that too?” Braddock shakes her head. “It would be so easy, y’know?”
“What would be easy?”
“Just to give in. Just to be ruthless and cutthroat like Aphrodite taught me. Be that person Aphrodite created. That person would get rid of those board members conspiring against me. But…”
“...but you’re not that person anymore?” Aurora asks. Glory nods her head in confirmation.
“That’s right. I am not that person anymore. I don’t want to be that person anymore. I want to be the person my dad raised me to be, a good person who does things the right way. In fact, just last week in Phoenix I met with Clyde Sutter…the monster my daughter is dating…”
“And what happened?”
“...we buried the hatchet.” Glory smiles warmly as she thinks back to just last week when she was speaking with Sutter. “It felt good. I don’t trust him, he’ll have to earn my trust, but it felt good to do it the right way. That’s who I want to be.”
“Good. Just be that person, ok? Do not let all of these problems overwhelm you. You can overcome it without being cutthroat, without taking shortcuts.”
“But taking the shortcut is so tempting right now.” Glory admits with a sigh. “I have tried for so long that it is tiresome. Like I said, I want to give up. I am tempted to give up.”
“Look, just calm down.” Aurora stands up and approaches Glory. Glory stands up and the two embrace in a tight hug. “You brought me in to help and I will help. Do you trust me?”
“Yes.”
“Good. Then let me help. If it will ease your mind I will look into this. I will see if there is any truth to these rumors. I’m pretty sure I can convince one of the board members to talk.”
“Thanks, Aurora.” She smiles.
“Don’t mention it.”
“Just one thing…”
“What’s that?” Aurora asks as they break the embrace.
“Do not trust anyone.”
“You don’t have to tell me, Glory. Remember who I grew up with…my brother, Matthew, who was indicted on federal charges and my sister Jennifer who SHOULD HAVE BEEN indicted on federal charges but covered her tracks better…” Aurora smirks “...I know better than anyone else that you cannot trust anyone. But these board members you are worried about, they trust me immensely. If there is any sort of plot, they’ll tell me. But honestly I think you’re just worrying yourself over nothing.” Aurora places a hand on Glory’s shoulder. “In fact, maybe you should start seeing that therapist again.”
“The psychiatrist you mean?” Glory shakes her head. “No, I’d rather not.”
“He helped you once before.”
“He did help me, I admit that. But I was forced to go by the same board of directors who took control of the company from me, in order to satisfy themselves that I wasn’t insane. If I go back, who is to say that someone won’t pick up on that? Who is to say that word of me going to see a therapist won’t get out into the public? I don’t want the entire world thinking I’m insane.” Braddock’s eyes grow wide. “I am NOT insane!”
“I know, you’re not insane.” Aurora gently rubs her shoulders to calm her down. The wild look on Glory’s face slowly goes away. “It was just a suggestion. Ok?”
“Uh, yeah, right. I’ll take it under advisement.” She turns and walks towards the office door, preparing to exit. “Sorry about all of this. I didn’t mean to cause any trouble.”
“No apology is necessary, Glory. Just help yourself, ok? Let me worry about the company.”
“Thanks.”
Glory Braddock steps outside the office. Immediately she turns to look at the receptionist, who once again cowers in fear upon seeing The British Bombshell. Glory smiles sheepishly.
“Sorry, Amber.”
“Uh…ok…”
Braddock sighs as she walks off. She hopes that she has found a friend in Aurora who can help ease her mind. Still, a nagging part of her thinks that she just made things worse. Can she really trust Aurora Alan?