That byline felt amazing to see again.
It only took a few minutes for Wes to text her.It’s good. Excellent. Way better than Tyler’s attempt.
Thanks, she wrote back.No one has commented yet.
Oh, he replied,they will.
It only took a few more seconds for Wes to be proven right.
Can you believe this?lakeluver23 commented on the story.Looks like the Spear was onto something.
That was the beginning.
An hour after she posted Dot’s revised obituary, someone commented,I knew Milly. It happened.
Soon, other people were stepping forward with stories of how John Wilson had coerced them, threatened them, or worse. The people who waded in with comments likeInnocent until proven guiltyandYou’re ruining the life of a good man and a good Canadianor worse—usually much worse—were roundly called out and eventually drowned out by people who finally felt safe enough to tell their stories and those supporting them. In death, like in life, Dot was having an impact.
And finally getting her revenge, as Wilson’s carefully crafted reputation took hit after hit, especially after OlwayM began to post commentsdetailing her story. Nadine supposed this took the place of Monica going on the record.
Nadine probably wouldn’t see any change while employed at theHeraldthough. She knew posting the obituary would not be the smartest career advancement move, which was confirmed when Lisanne texted her a bunch of exclamation marks and the messageWTF are you doing?
But strangely, for once, she wasn’t scared. She’d been calm after posting, and calm when the calls started coming in from other reporters looking for comments, then from theHerald’s own communications manager, reminding her in coded corporate speak that to do any interviews would be the equivalent of digging her own grave deeper.
She ignored it all, confident and at peace, like she was raking that gravel in Dot’s garden.
However, it didn’t mean she was looking forward to the emergency meeting she’d been summoned to, seven hours after her post went live. The obituary had been taken down, but copies and screenshots were circling the web. In fact, taking it down had added more fuel to the fire, with commentators inflamed by the idea theHeraldwas covering up the story.
“Nadine, Daniel is ready for you in the main boardroom.” It was his assistant, Tania, a woman Nadine had always gotten along with, and her face was pinched with concern as she tugged on her micro braids. “He’s pretty upset.”
“I figured.” Nadine tried to smile. Figures her composure would dissipate now that the confrontation was imminent.
Tania looked around. “The story was really good,” she whispered. “I always thought that guy was slimy, and Dot Voline was my mom’s favorite writer. She named me after one of her characters.”
She brought Nadine to the boardroom, making her feel uncomfortably like she was on a perp walk, and left her at the door. Her phone dinged and showed a single gold flag from Wes.
Then a message from Lisanne: a GIF of an octopus punching a fish, with the message,Be the octopus.
She waited to see if her heart rate would slow, then decided it was a lost cause and opened the door. Daniel sat at the table to the right of theHerald’s owner, Freddy Majors. A woman Nadine recognized as his daughter and rumored successor, Olivia, sat to the left. No one smiled. At least HR wasn’t there.
Unless it meant they didn’t want witnesses.
Nadine didn’t wait to be asked but took a seat near the end of the table across from Majors Senior.
Daniel started. “I am profoundly disappointed in you,” he said in the deep voice of a scolding dad. “I said this was not a story theHeraldwas interested in running. You were insubordinate, and you embarrassed yourself as a journalist and theHeraldas an organization.”
Nadine noticed Olivia watching Daniel with a neutral expression. Unlike Freddy, she wasn’t nodding in agreement.
“Your article added fire to the baseless claims theSpearput forward and that John has been valiantly fighting,” said Freddy.
Nadine waited. They waited. Was she supposed to say something? Might as well. It couldn’t get any worse.
“I understand the story would be upsetting to Mr. Wilson,” she said, grateful her voice remained steady.
“As you should,” said Freddy. “I’ve known him for a long time, and these claims are ridiculous. He’s never acted like this around me.”
She kept going. “Especially given the replies of many people in the comments who experienced similar behavior from him and who had their own stories of his use of intimidation to advance his career and illegal misconduct.”
“Allegations,” said Daniel. “Those areallegations.”