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I know the feeling.
“What is so important, then?” asks one general. He wears a flat cap to hide the hair he’s been losing in handfuls due to age, and I’m slightly amused that it matches his suit.
“Yes,” speaks up another. “You told us nothing, only that we were to be here tonight.”
“If I’m honest, I’m surprised any of you even heard that order,” I reply, resting back in my chair as I observe them. “I seem to remember telling you” —I point one long finger down the table to a bulky man with a thick, black beard— “that we were to stop distributing those sex tapes because I’ve closed down the website.”
He fixes me with a blank stare. “I did.”
“Did you?” I tilt my head, resting one hand on the table while the other adjusts my dress as I cross my legs. “Because I saw the newest video, the one I ordered to be scrapped, circulating on social media.”
“Someone must have downloaded it.”
“From where?” My eyes narrow slightly. “We never uploaded it because as I said two weeks ago, we are done with that shit. It was neveruploaded, so how could someone have downloaded it?”
He shrugs. “Things like that don’t happen overnight.”
“Things like what?”
“You think you can just shut down all seventeen of our websites?” He scoffs sharply and leans forward in his seat. “Do you have any idea how much money we were making off those?”
“I do. I saw the numbers and I asked you to show me the contracts for all the actors you used to film that porn. Because I understand roleplay, I understand safe words and what people will get up to for the right kind of cash. Trust me, I do. But you couldn’t show me contracts confirming that every model is over the age of eighteen or that we were paying them fairly.”
“It’s the porn industry,” says another voice across from the bearded man. “No one gives a shit about that. People just want to get their rocks off.”
“I care,” I say coldly. “The people we’re exploiting care.”
“So?” remarks another in a tone that suggests my desires are as ridiculous as if I’d just asked for every attack dog to be dyed pink. “We aren’t some shitty corporation. People can’t sue us. Hell, they can’t do shit. So who the fuck cares? Those actors do what we demand and we make money. That’s how it works.”
“It’s not a hard concept,” another pipes up. “People still want the product, so why are we shooting ourselves in the foot?”
“Do you think I’m being ridiculous by seeking contracts for these people?” I ask.
“It’s porn,” says another. “You see a woman getting choked and think something sinister is going on.”
“The lack of a contract would suggest so, sure,” I reply. “I did say I had no problem just hitting pause until we made sure all of our actors were being paid fairly and taken care of, but every single one of you had a problem with that, which loops us back to the original concern that hardly any of them are over eighteen. None of you sees a problem with that?”
Glances are exchanged, shoulders roll, and one man buries his face in a glass of water.
No one speaks, but their answers are clear.
“Then the sites stay down. And if I see even a hint of another movie making the rounds, there will be hell to pay.”
Another round of glances makes its way around the table, all carrying the exact look I know too well. No one believes me. My threats carry no weight. They don’t respect me enough to care.
They will after tonight.
“Enough business talk,” I say, standing suddenly. “A toast.”
“With what drink?” scoffs a general.
Just as the words leave him, servants melt from the shadows of the room and approach the table. I study each man in turn as his drink order is taken and within two minutes, everyone has a glass in hand. My own is red wine, a simple classic, but it feels exceptionally fitting for tonight.
“Well, gentlemen, I have an announcement I feel like you will all be eager to hear.”
That gets their attention. They watch me like a pack of hungry cats cornering a little mouse, waiting for the first sign of life before they pounce.
“For two months, I have tried to fill my father’s shoes. His death left us all shocked, and while the culprit of his assassination remains at large, one thing became very clear to me.”