Lady in Red Ch. 29

"I've got to agree. Every person here supported his actions without reservation. They don't show any noticeable signs of PTSD that I could see. These two kids attract good people to them. I've never seen anything quite like it. It's like they're eighteen, going on forty. I can't see any reason to suspect this attack was anything other than what it appears. These kids are clean. We can concentrate on the attackers and their actions. We can leave now."

"You guys go ahead," offered Detective Dorn. "I'm going to hang around and do a little more investigating. I have a few more questions."

"Are any of those questions for that blonde teacher?" joked Agent Lacey. "You seem to be smitten by her."

"Have you ever had an English teacher that could fill out a bikini like that?" demanded Dorn as he watched Ashley apply sunscreen to her arms.

The FBI people laughed and headed to their car while Dorn meandered back into the party. It was about twenty minutes later when Ashley approached Steve with a nervous acting detective following her.

"Steve, Detective Dorn has asked me to go to the concert with him Friday night. I told him I planned on volunteering at the benefit and he promised he'd help me do whatever I was doing. I heard how Lisa relies on you to help her decide if a guy is the real deal or a pretender. Should I go out with the detective?" finished Ashley.

"That's a good question, Ashley. How old is he? Has he ever been married? Does he have kids? What are his intentions? Does he make a good living? What are his long range goals?" asked Steve bluntly.

"Who the hell do you think you are to ask questions like that? You're not her father! I don't see why I should be trying to convince some kid why I should be allowed take Ashley out," snapped Dorn.

"Well, Ashley, it looks like he's not the one. Any man worth his salt would crawl over broken glass just for a smile from a woman like you. It appears that the Detective doesn't need or want a smart, beautiful, generous woman. He must have so many ladies already that he doesn't need to waste his time trying to convince me that he's good enough for you," reasoned Steve as he stared at Dorn.

"Wait! I made a mistake. I don't have any girlfriends. I was just surprised and embarrassed that Ashley would ask you if she should go out with me. I'm single, graduated from State with a degree in Criminal Justice. I'm twenty-eight, never been married and don't have any kids. I want to stay in Sparta and work my way up and eventually head up the police department. I don't make a lot now, but in a couple years, I should be making a pretty good salary. I'm a good detective, but I need to control my temper a little better. I'd never hurt a woman, or force myself on one.

"I saw Ashley when we were investigating that first attack, but I never had the chance to speak to her. I've been trying to think of an excuse to talk to her for the past several months. I apologize for being such an ass earlier, but it was my pride talking. I'm trying to convince an eighteen year old that I'm good enough to date his teacher. That just seems weird to me, but I'll do whatever it takes to prove to Ashley I'm a good guy."

"What do you think now, Steve? I don't think I can stand dating another loser. He's pretty good looking and he has a big gun. Should I take a chance on him?" wondered Ashley.

"Detective Dorn, you're right that I'm not her father. He's dead. I'm the one guy on this planet that really cares for Ashley and wants to see her happy and safe. That should make you like and respect me, if you have any feelings for Ashley. She's special, beautiful, and smart, but very vulnerable. If she goes out with you, will you avoid tobacco and drugs; and alcohol if you're driving? Will you treat her with respect and be willing to do anything it takes, including endangering your own life to keep her from harm? Does that sound like too much to ask?"

"No, it doesn't, to be honest. I'd gladly do all of that for her. Just give me the opportunity to prove it," implored Dorn.

"If you want to go out with him Friday, I think it'll be okay, but let me know if he mistreats you or uses drugs, or alcohol and drives. If he can't respect a wonderful woman like you, he doesn't deserve you," reasoned Steve.

Dorn stuck his hand out and Steve shook it firmly. "I'd better get back to the station. I've got tons of paperwork and reports to fill out. Thanks, Steve. I'll call you, Ashley, to set a time to pick you up on Friday."

As soon as Dorn disappeared from sight, Ashley jumped into Steve's arms. "That was so sweet! You really do look out for me. No wonder all of us females love you so much. Gwen, Becky, Jordan, and Naomi are all looking at us. I'd better let go of you and go tell them what just happened," reasoned Ashley just before kissing Steve on the lips and then running off to join her friends.

"It's a good thing Steve graduated yesterday or Sis could be in trouble for such an open display of affection for a student," stated Becky as Ashley hurried their way with a huge grin on her face. "Look at her smile. It makes me wonder what just happened."

"That Detective Dorn just asked me out on a date!" giggled Ashley like a school girl. 'He was pretty shy and got all red when he finally managed to ask me."

"Cool!" replied Jordan. "He's a good looking guy and only a few years older than you. I saw him giving you the 'once-over', about ten times. Can we assume you agreed to go out with him?"

"I made him talk to Steve about it. I saw how much Lisa relied on Steve's opinion to help her find a good guy. I thought it seemed like an excellent idea, so I told him that Steve had to okay it before I went out with him."

"He was okay with that?" asked a skeptical Naomi. "He's a cop and ten years older than Steve. I can't imagine him not getting pissed at that notion."

"He did get all pissy with Steve! He said he didn't think he should be asking a kid if he could take me out. Steve pretty much told him to go to hell if he didn't feel a smart, beautiful, generous woman like me was worth the effort to convince Steve he was a good guy. He was annoyed because Steve asked if he was married, had kids, had plans for the future, and if he made a good living. Can you imagine? Dorn bitched that Steve wasn't my father.

"Steve told him that my father was dead and that he was the one guy in the world that genuinely cared about my welfare. The detective apologized pretty quickly. He couldn't eat crow fast enough. He practically begged Steve to reconsider.

"Then Steve told him he had to treat me with respect, not use drugs, or even alcohol when he drove with me! He told Dorn he had to be prepared to risk his life to keep me safe. If he agreed to all of that, Steve would let him take me out."

"My God! Steve gave Detective Dorn 'the talk'!" gasped Lisa as she arrived in time to hear the end of Ashley's story. "That's so cool! Doesn't it feel good to have a man care enough about you to lay down the law to another man that wants to date you? Dad gave Steve the same talk, more or less, and then Dad gave it to Jason last weekend. I was so proud of Dad and Jason told me his respect for Dad increased immeasurably. I've got to tell Dad about this!"

"Gwen, your boyfriend is full of surprises. When I saw his beautiful, blonde teacher hugging and kissing him, I thought he was probably working on getting into her little bikini panties. It turns out he's protecting her like a father would. I should have remembered that he likes the more ample assed type."

"That reminds me," stated Gwen. "Where's Jared? He should have formed an answer by now about who has the bigger butt. He's studied yours all afternoon. I wonder if he even had time to glance at mine."

"It's a pretty safe bet he managed a few looks. Every man here has done nothing but look at your ass, except when you were facing them, and then they stared at your boobs," observed Naomi. "I will admit that a few eyes wandered Jordan's way now and then, although I can't, for the life of me, figure out why."

Gwen's and Naomi's banter was interrupted by Charlotte. "I've been following the news reports today. I know you said you wanted to relax and not bother with them, but a lot's been going on. For one thing, Steve was right about those armed terrorists being American.

"They all belonged to a survivalist group in Montana. They hated the government and blamed it when they lost their homes and marriages in the recession. They were all bitter, lonely men that formed a support group that fed off each others' hatred and anger. Most of them had police records for violent offenses.

"They wanted to send a message to the world about how unfairly they had been treated and they decided that finishing what the other terrorists failed to accomplish would gain them the necessary notoriety. They especially wanted to kill you and Steve, and any family and friends they could manage. They expected to blow up half the population of Sparta at the graduation and then shoot any survivors! The police in Montana found all of the information on computers at the compound where the men lived."

"Wow!" exclaimed Gwen. "Steve was right about them being after us and our families. Now I worry that there are more people that think the same way. Steve won't be around all the time to keep saving Kate, Lisa, me, and everyone else."

"Don't get too upset over this. We'll just have to think of some ways to keep everyone safe. You and Steve are 'America's Royal Couple' and will be the targets of all sorts of schemes and scams until someone else comes along to gain public favor," reasoned Naomi. "But, you're both smart and very capable. This is just the down side to being the sexiest woman alive and dating the sexiest man ever born. My offer to trade places still holds."

"I guess there's a price for everything, and no good deed goes unpunished. I think Steve and I need to catch up on what's going on with this investigation and maybe have a news conference. That Bill Hardy will be doing his best to denigrate Steve and me any way he can."

Gwen found Steve eating a hamburger and led him into her father's den. Then she dialed Clyde's number and put him on speaker phone. "Clyde, we're thinking of having a session with the press. They're all over town and that Bill Hardy's trying to ruin us anyway he can. I think Steve needs to state his case again and let people hear what he did and why."

"I have some information for you kids that should reduce the effects of Hardy's smear campaign. I've seen and handled bullies like him my entire life. Here are a few suggestions you should consider."

Twenty minutes later, Gwen placed a call to Amber Stahl. "Amber, Steve and I have been deluged with requests for interviews. We feel it's about time we made ourselves accessible to the media. I was wondering if you could set it up? We'll be at the warehouse we're using for the concert in half an hour. Do you think you could alert your fellow reporters that we'll be fielding questions at that time?"

"Sure, Gwen, but I should warn you that Bill Hardy's in town and he's looking for anything he can find to make you and Steve look bad. He really has a bug up his butt about you both. He's the nightly news anchor for our network, so I have to be careful around him. The station treats him like he owns the place. Be aware that he'll do his best to make you guys look bad."

"Thanks for the heads-up, but we're as prepared for him as we'll ever be, so please let everyone know we'll be available in half an hour," responded Gwen before disconnecting.

Half an hour later, Steve and Gwen entered a room set up with chairs and about a dozen microphones on a table in front of it. Over a dozen reporters were seated on the other side of the table.

"Thanks for coming, everyone. We understand you have some questions for us about the situation yesterday at our graduation. First, let me say that we've been told by the family of the Officer Clune that he's out of intensive care, but still in serious condition. With time, care, and determination, he should make a full recovery. Nothing is more important to us right now than the health of this brave officer of the law that was gravely wounded protecting the citizens of the Spartan Nation. We thank him for his service, his sacrifice, and his bravery. Now we'll entertain questions."

Most of the questions were directed at Steve and his role in thwarting the attack the previous day, starting with his morning run. Steve answered all questions precisely and gave sound explanations for every move he made. Things seemed to be going well until Bill Hardy gained the floor.

"Mr. Hammer, how do you justify firing two handguns into such a large and panicked crowd? Wasn't it possible that some of the bullets fired by you could have struck innocent people?"

"I'm not here to justify anything, Mr. Hardy. I'm simply answering questions about what occurred. People like you will take it upon themselves to worry about justifications. I simply did what I felt was necessary at the time."

"You seem to have a cavalier attitude about the lives of innocent people. It didn't worry you that some of them could have been shot, and possibly killed, by the bullets fired from your handguns?"

"Mr. Hardy, you've been doing your best to push your agenda of maligning Steve and me for months," responded Gwen hotly. "If Steve didn't care about the lives of others, would he have dived into that icy river to save those children last fall? Would he have entered that gym last winter knowing that armed terrorists with bombs were waiting? Would he have carried those bombs away from the stage yesterday, knowing they could be detonated at any time? Would he have returned, knowing that he was likely to be in a deadly gun battle? He didn't have to do any of those things, but he did. He did them because he values lives very highly, especially innocent women and children. For you to suggest otherwise is far more than just insulting. It's abominable!

"Let me ask you this question, Mr. Hardy. It's been 24 hours since that attack. You've had time to consider everything. Exactly what would you have done in Steve's situation, assuming you had the skills of observation and deduction that Steve has? Tell us just exactly how you would have handled the whole situation," demanded Gwen.

"I'm not here to answer questions. I'm the reporter! I ask the questions, and you're not doing a very good job answering them," replied Hardy as he made no effort to conceal his annoyance.

"You're a public figure, creating news with lies and innuendos. You're implying that Steve may have unnecessarily risked innocent lives, so it's reasonable to ask what you would have done differently. I think I know the answer to that. You aren't exactly known for your courage and conviction. You never would have noticed the bombs. If you had, you never would've risked your life to remove them. If you had done that, you never would have returned to the stage knowing armed men were planning an attack. If you had come back armed, you probably would have shot more innocent people than the attackers because you lack the skill and the nerve to do what Steve Hammer is so capable of doing.

"Lacking those skills and courage, you waltz into town looking for people that are critical of Steve. You try to build a case against Steve; that he was reckless and out of control. The truth is quite different. Steve is expert with handguns, with either hand. There probably aren't more than a couple dozen people in the world that could have accomplished what Steve managed yesterday. He shot fast and he shot straight. No bystanders were harmed. I agree that it's difficult to believe, but that fact is testimony to Steve's nerve and skill, not his good fortune.

"What have you done to help others? When have you risked your life for innocents? When have you stepped forward on a stage, knowing full well that you'd be the target of multiple gunmen? Have you noticed that none of the other reporters have pursued your line of questioning? You probably would have us believe that it's because you're so clever and can see what others do not. The truth is that you're a petty, jealous man using your position as a network news anchor as a bully pulpit to push your agenda. That agenda, for whatever reason, is to attack Steve and me.

"I don't care so much what you say about me, but Steve Hammer is a hero by any definition of that word. He's proven his courage, skill, and respect for life more times in the past year than most people do in a life time."

"This is all very touching, but not answers to my questions, Ms. Anderson. You've admitted having a relationship with Mr. Hammer. Wouldn't you think that would certainly prevent you both from being considered 'America's Royal Couple'? Can you honestly say that your conduct has been such that anyone could consider you a 'Royal Couple'?

"I'd like to address that question," stated Steve calmly. "We never asked for that title. America has no royalty. We're founded on the belief of equality. That said, Gwen Anderson is a wonderful role model. She's proven herself to be generous, brave, and compassionate. Her beauty is breath taking, and her intelligence is almost off the charts. She represents everything that's right with this country, and with its young adults."

"Is sleeping around something parents should want their children to emulate?" retorted Hardy.

Steve quickly rose from his chair and moved around the table in Hardy's direction. Before he made it very far, Bill Hardy began back pedaling and tripped over some cables. He barely hit the floor before he was back up and moving quickly for the door. Steve calmly stopped, bent over, and picked up a cell phone and handed it to a lady reporter he didn't recognize.

"You dropped this, Ma'am," smiled Steve as handed her the phone. "Now where were we? Where did Mr. Hardy go? I thought he wanted to ask us more questions."

After he spoke, Steve broke into a hearty laugh. Soon all of the reporters were laughing with him. The laughter continued even after Steve returned to his seat. Gwen was grinning as she moved ahead to speak into the microphones.

"I have some other information I want to share with you. Clyde Davis, our friend and manager, has joined with a few substantial investors, along with Jordan, Steve and me to form 'The Lady in Red Productions'. It'll take over the production and marketing of our line of swim suits and evening wear. To that end, we have purchased the Lerner Building just down the street. It will serve as company headquarters as well as be used to manufacture the clothing line. We expect to hire about fifteen people immediately. We'll no longer be paying other companies to make our products. We'll guarantee that they'll be 'Made in America' and be of high quality.

"Our production company will be involved in music, movies, TV, posters, promotions, advertising, and finding and signing talent. All profits will be channeled to charitable endeavors in the Spartan Nation. We'll continue to funnel all profits to the hospital fund through the end of the year. Then we'll reassess the needs of the area. Clyde believes that our movie, which will be titled "Midnight Lights", will easily repay investors in the first few weeks of release. Once expenses are met, our share of the profits kicks in and all monies made by the shares that Jordan, Steve, Clyde, and I control will be channeled to the hospital expansion fund. It's our hope that we'll raise enough to make the hospital expansion viable. Profits from future projects may be directed to other worthy causes.

"I'm extremely proud to announce that "Lady in Red Productions' has also purchased this wonderful building. You can see some modifications are already being made. After the concert Friday, construction will begin in earnest. You are now standing in 'The Lady in Red Center for the Performing Arts'! There will be Broadway shows, cultural events; charity events, fund raisers, and who knows what else taking place here.