“Goddammit!” he said, crumpling papers that were beneath his right hand. “Blair’s your hairdresser, right?”
“Phil, just tell me it’s not true and I’ll let it go.”
“Honey,” he said, trying to compose himself, “it’s not true.”
“The first thing I did was laugh. I thought, when would he have the time?”
Madison sensed a definite lightening of her tone after his denial. “Leeza, honey, there’s nothing going on. Never has and never will be in a million years. You’re the only woman in my life.”
“It means a lot to hear you say that. I mean, I know that I am. It’s just that it caught me totally off guard. I thought it was a joke until I realized she was serious. Rumors like this spread quickly, people look at you funny. They think it’s true. And when you deny it, they think, What’s she gonna say?”
Madison was nodding, clenching his jaw. “Where did Blair hear this?”
“She was talking to Serena yesterday.”
“Serena. How’d she get involved?”
“Serena’s cousin’s niece is enrolled in the program at CCMR.”
“Serena’s cousin’s niece…how would a rumor like that get started?”
“Supposedly slipped out during a conversation she was having with Brittany Harding.”
“Slipped out,” Madison said. “Now do you see why Murph and I need to meet tomorrow night?”
“Let’s just get her out of our life, Phil.”
“I’m working on it, honey. I promise you I’ll find some way of ending this nightmare.”
He hung up the phone and buried his face in his hands. She seemed to handle it well and accept his denial without resistance. But as he was to find out, dealing with Leeza was the easy part.
CHAPTER 15
HIS MEETING WITH MURPHY was short and to the point. “Mr. Positive” was anything but, having heard one story after another of Harding’s systematic destruction of the Consortium from within. Madison’s recent experiences were just icing on an already glazed cake. It was no longer safe to have her around, controlling the inner workings of the office, Murphy was saying.
“She’s got to be let go now.”
Madison just sat there and nodded his approval. He could imagine how Murphy used to be, before he discovered positive mental attitude therapy. It was easy to lapse back into reality and good old pessimism when the stresses of life interceded.
“Am I wrong, Phil, am I wrong?”
“No, Murph. I agree with you, it’s got to be done. My only question is how we’re going to keep things running without a staff person directing and running the programs until we get someone hired.”
“I can be up here most of the time for a couple of weeks. We’ll just have to get someone hired within that time.”
“When are you going to break the news?”
“I need to speak with our attorney, but everything should be in order. I’ll probably talk with her on Saturday morning.”
“Do I need to be there?”
“No sense involving you in this mess. Do you have any reservations about — ”
“None whatsoever.”
“Then it’s a done deal. Don’t worry, we’ll find someone to take over. Go home and spend some time with Leeza. And give her my regards.”
They shook hands and Madison left, feeling as if the monkey had been lifted from his back. In this case, King Kong — aka Brittany Harding.
CHAPTER 16
IT HAD BEEN A GRUELING day in surgery: a total hip replacement that lasted six hours and an ankle pinning that was supposed to be completed in thirty minutes, but took three times that due to complications with the Achilles tendon. Madison showered, changed into his street clothes, then checked his voicemail before leaving the hospital. A message from John Stevens caught his attention. On the slight possibility that Stevens was still there poring over a budget or reading a report, he took the elevator up to the third floor.
Madison was about to knock on the door when it opened. Stevens stood there staring at Madison, his sports jacket draped over his left forearm.
“On your way out?” Madison asked.
“Yeah, you?”
“Just got your message, thought I’d catch you.”
“You in the garage?”
Madison nodded.
“Good, so am I. Why don’t we walk and talk?”
As they headed down the corridor, Madison said, “Your message mentioned something about Brittany.”
“You wanted me to keep my ears open,” he said. “Word is that you misappropriated some funds. Bought a boat or something, and that’s why the Consortium is having financial trouble. You don’t own a boat, do you, Phil?”
Madison shook his head. “Embezzlement?”
“That’s what she’s saying.”
“This rumor started with Brittany, I take it.”
Stevens looked at him, as if to say, Did you really need to ask?
Madison smiled out of one corner of his mouth and shook his head.
“Is that funny?”
“What’s funny, John, is that she really believes this bullshit.”
Stevens looked at him as if he didn’t understand. “Yesterday she was spreading rumors that she and I were having an affair.”
“Should I ask — ”
“No, you shouldn’t. We’re not having an affair, John. This woman has a very active imagination.”
“Lost touch with reality, if you ask me. Delusional.”
Madison pushed through the door into the stairwell. “Yeah, well, just between the two of us, Friday’s her last day. This nightmare will be out of my life for good.”
“You really think it’s that easy?”
“What do you mean?” Madison asked, his smile fading.
“Someone like this doesn’t merely just stop spreading rumors because she’s fired. Mark my words. It’s gonna get worse once she loses her job. Then it gets vindictive. Personal. And there’s absolutely nothing you can do about it.”
They descended the last flight of stairs and stepped into the parking garage.
“Come on. What makes you think — ”
“I lived through it. Ten years ago. We had a staff person with Concerned Environmentalists who was pissed off at being fired. Different circumstances, but basically what happened was that she started spreading rumors all over the community. Nasty stuff, mostly aimed at the president at the time. I was just a VP, so I didn’t catch much of it. But it was pretty ugly at times. And there was nothing he could do about it.”
“What happened?”
“Eventually, his term as
