Chapter 08 β Revenge
When I woke on Sunday morning my angel was still curled up next to me and everything felt right. As the sun peaked through the blinds, I could not help but think of how perfect a moment this was. I did not want to move but gladly shifted over slightly when Penny crawled into bed with Brooke and me. The three of us laid there for what felt like an eternity. I enjoyed every moment of it.
Our Sunday was lazy and comfortable around the house and I definitely felt the balance and buzz return. I was crazy about both of these women and didn't have to hide it from either of them. I felt on top of the world.
The work week saw me hitting the office with renewed life and all the women noticed. Leslie could not help but giggle every time she saw me. It was as if they were all in on a joke and I was the punchline, only I was laughing with them. Finally things felt like they were back to normal. I feared that only meant that something else was coming.
Something did come.
Late Tuesday, after most of the women had gone home for the day and only Leslie and I remained in the office, the front door opened. I looked through the glass window in my office to see Mindy come into the suite. She was crying and she rushed immediately into Leslie's office. I sat, fighting the urge to bolt from my chair, waiting; wondering what had her so upset. I decided that it was better to let her talk to Leslie first, before I went barreling into Leslie's office, trying to be a hero. Several minutes later I got an indication that something was very wrong.
"SON OF A BITCH," I heard Leslie holler.
I sprang from my chair and walked swiftly to her office. Mindy was seated in one of the chairs in front of Leslie's desk and Leslie was behind her desk staring at her computer screen.
"What is going on," I asked hurriedly.
I noticed that Mindy was still crying as she stood up and ran to me. She threw her arms around me and hugged me tightly. I held her and looked towards Leslie, who had anger in her eyes.
"It seems we have a situation to deal with," Leslie said to me, as all of the sudden she became very calm. "It seems that the video you made of Melinda was not her first leading role on film. Apparently young Bradley is in possession of a video of the two them and has decided to share it with the world."
Leslie turned her computer screen towards me and on it was the video of Brad and Mindy having sex. In that moment it all made sense. Mindy was shaking in my arms. Leslie had frustration on her face. My mind was racing at a mile a minute.
"Can't we get an injunction to have the website shutdown," I asked Leslie in my best wannabe lawyer voice.
"He is a participant in the video which makes him the legal owner of the film," Leslie informed me. "And since he isn't selling it for profit and Mindy had knowledge that she was being recorded, we would have a very uphill battle."
Mindy pulled away from me and walked over to Leslie. She hugged her aunt and tried to control her tears. As I watched this, it occurred to me that Mindy brought her problem to the woman she trusted most in the world and not to her own mother. That was a sad statement. Leslie tried to calm her niece, but it was not working.
"I'm so sorry," Mindy said through her tears.
"Don't be," I encouraged her. "He's a scumbag and I am sure this was not entirely his idea."
"I had that same thought," Leslie growled. "Those bitches!"
"Mindy, hold your head high and don't give him the satisfaction of getting to you," I suggested. "I know it is tough to do, but you are a tough lady. Fuck him. He only showed it because he doesn't have you anymore. Don't let him know you are upset."
"Yeah, that sounds good, but he emailed the link to the entire school directory," she revealed. "Professor's included."
"WOW," I exclaimed. "That was a very stiff statement."
"You should have seen the looks I was getting," Mindy snapped.
"Ok, we need a new strategy," I conceded.
I looked at the video on the screen and then back to the face of the beautiful woman Mindy had become. This was a shame. She was going through a brutal public branding and it was not her fault. She was just being an experimental young woman who trusted the wrong guy.
I looked back to the screen again.
"I am going to call Bill," Leslie announced.
I looked back to Mindy.
Leslie picked up the phone.
I looked back to the screen.
"NO," I yelled. "Wait."
I looked back at Mindy. As I stared at her, it hit me like a ton of bricks.
"How old were you when you made this video," I asked her.
"I was 16," she admitted softly.
I looked at Leslie and she immediately knew where I was going with this.
"How do we play this," Leslie asked me.
"You're the lawyer, what are our options," I inquired.
"If we call the cops then the kid is going to jail for a while," she explained. "Or we could consider calling them and coming to an agreement."
"Tough choice since we don't exactly trust them," I exhaled.
"JAIL," Mindy exclaimed. "For what?"
"Mindy, you were not of legal age in that video," Leslie reminder her. "So, technically, he is broadcasting child pornography. It's a federal offense."
"Oh my god," Mindy gasped. "Are we really going to send him to jail?"
"That's up to you," Leslie deferred to her niece. "If you want to I will call the cops right now. Or, we could do our homework and see if we can really leverage this. I don't think he acted alone here. I don't believe it for one second."
"I don't know," Mindy whimpered. "I don't want him to go to jail, especially if those bitches put him up to this."
"Ok," Leslie accepted. "What do you want?"
Mindy looked at me and then back at her aunt. She thought hard for a long moment.
"Well, I want the site taken down," Mindy began. "I would like an apology. And I want him to be punished."