Interview - Junction City
It’s the third Thursday of the month and that means another bit of fiction for you my dear readers. For this one we go back to Junction City to peek in on a couple of our supporting characters. I hope you find this passage as engaging to read as I did to write. I present to you.
The Interview
Lara released a long peel of laughter only reluctantly pulling herself under control. Her mirth was echoed by the audience and seemed to fill the studio with warmth. She hopped this part of the interview made it into the final cut. Taking a few steadying breaths Lara leaned back and looked across her desk at her guest. “I had no idea you had such a good sense of humor Mz. Williams.”
Mz. William’s smiled, her painted red lips opening to release her almost lyrical voice. “One picks up a few jokes over time, it eases others so they are not so intimidated by me.”
“I see how that could be useful,” agreed Lara with a nod. There was great reason to be intimidated by Riri Wiliams. The woman was beautiful as though she’d been designed to be, towered over most people, was the wealthiest woman if not person in Junction City and perhaps the most dangerous. “It helps to remind everyone you are simply a mortal woman, same as all of us.”
It was Mz. William’s turn to nod but Lara detected the slightest shift in William’s posture. Struck a nerve did I?
“Precisely, an employer that leads through fear and intimidation breeds incompetence and betrayal,” agreed Mz. Williams.
“Interesting that you would mention leading through fear, considering the rumors.”
Mz. Williams arched one perfectly manicured eyebrow. “Rumors?”
“Surely you know,” prodded Lara. “They aren’t exactly obscure rumors.”
“You must be far more precise Lara dear,” answered Williams with an indifferent shrug. “I am the most powerful woman in the city, the tabloids print fresh rumors about me every morning. Is this the one about me filling soda cans with microchips? Or the one about my illicit affair with the Vice President?—” she lifted a finger. “I bet it’s the one about smuggling alien babies, is that the one?”
Good ploy, admitted Lara. “No, Mz. Williams. The one about the Iron Whip, about you being the Iron Whip?”
For a fraction of a second, for a tenth the span of a heart beat Mz. Williams eyes narrowed and something like malevolence loomed behind her hazel irises. Then it was gone, so fast that Lara wasn’t sure she’d caught anything.
“Iron Whip?” asked Mz. Williams. “Sounds like a dominatrix,” she leaned forward her lips curling into a mischievous smile. “Are you coming onto me Lara? Should I tie you up?”
The audience filled the air with a long, “oooooooooh.”
Lara recoiled as though slapped, heat rushing her cheeks. “What? No—”
“Do we need a safe-word?”
Scattered bursts of laughter exploded from the studio crowd.
“No,” asserted Lara slapping her palms to the table.
“The Iron Whip is the name of one of, if not the most terrible of the underworld bosses in Junction City. They, she, has her fingers in everything from arms smuggling to child trafficking. Her Findsmen are feared by criminals, cops and capes and,” Lara paused for effect. “She is you, if the rumors are true.”
The anger in Mz. Williams’ eyes was undisguised this time and for a moment Lara was certain the larger woman would spring forward and strike her, or try to. Then her expression shifted from anger to disgust.
“Of course,” Mz. Williams sighed. “People see a black woman climb to the heights of success and they simply cannot believe she got there fairly. This is no different than the rumors that I slept my way onto the Board, or doctored the productivity numbers of my holdings or bribed city officials for the lucrative contracts Lightning And Steel benefit from. No I couldn’t possibly have achieved these things on merit. Now the latest is that I am the very public, very well known head of a criminal organization.”
Mz. Williams cast her gaze to Lara and now she slid from disgusted to hurt. “Frankly, Lara, I’m disappointed in you. I would have thought that as a woman who made it in such a male dominated field you would understand how hurtful and damaging such accusations are. They do not undercut just myself but all women who work twice as hard as their male counterparts to get what they deserve.”
The following silence was almost suffocating. Lara could feel sweat beading on her neck and the studio lights felt two degrees hotter. With each syllable of Mz. Williams admonishment Lara had remembered the years of fighting to be taken seriously, the malicious whispers behind her back and being passed over and under payed for her hard work. Am I—
But her thoughts were shattered by a howl from the crowd. “Williams!”
Lara’s eyes turned from William’s hurt face to the man in the crowd rising to his feet and pulling something large and silver from his coat. Time slowed, Lara knew she should move, dive for cover, hide under the desk or just race off the stage but the shock of an audience member pulling some kind of weapon from his coat was enough to pin her to her seat. Don’t lock up Lara.
She exhaled, taking the time to still her mind and quiet her fear. She was no cape but she wasn’t some powerless civilian either, returning her attention to the man in the crowd she could see now he held two objects, one in each hand and was bringing them together to create, what she assumed was, a larger weapon. That made sense, Williams’ was a known superhuman, an ex-titan if her sources were to be believed and no one actually knew how her powers worked only what they looked like.
Lara pushed from the chair, watching it slide back as though drifting through molasses and just barely caught the flash of light from the corner of her eye. Turning her attention to Williams she saw the woman had burst from her seat, the velvet chair soaring behind her as lightning wrapped her body in a brilliant blue energy. It happened so fast that not even Lara’s enhanced perceptions could see exactly what was happening but from the brilliant silhouette came a golden juggernaut.
The sound of malice and hate pulled Lara’s attention back to the shooter in the crowd. With her perceptions sped up she couldn’t understand the word coming from his mouth but the spittle flying through the air and the manic look in his eyes told her he was probably swearing. More alarming was the brass object speeding toward the stage on a column of fire.
When Lara told people she was fast enough to dodge bullets they thought that meant they crawled through the air like snails. What it actually meant was that they raced through the air like baseballs, pitched by professional athletes, and she still had to spot the tiny things. Thankfully this rocket was moving slower than a bullet so she could definitely move out of the way but having no idea what the blast radius was where was safe? Just move Lara.
She dove beneath her desk, covered her ears, and prayed.
There was a heavy thud followed by a tremor rippling through the floor and then a cacophony that blasted apart sound and left her ears ringing. A wave of heat washed past her and the heavy desk lifted an inch into the air, but instead of flying apart it landed three inches closer to her back. She knew it was foolish, but she had to know so Lara peeked from behind the desk.
Mz. Williams’ golden back gleamed under the the studio lights with the edges of her diaphanous cape crawling with flame. She was posed, hands on hips as though daring the attacker to take another shot. The stage behind her was unharmed save for the discarded chairs and loose debris of the things cast from her desk while the stage before Williams was charred and broken. Even here, less than three feet from William’s back Lara couldn’t tell if the woman had transformed or donned some sort of advanced armor.
Riri looked over her shoulder, the corona of light wrapping her head making her face hard to see but Lara could discern the hint of a smirk. Then she leaped, ground splintering as she launched into the panicked crowd to land before the would-be assassin.
“That will be enough,” declared Williams as she pulled the man into the air by his collar and crushed the weapon with her opposite hand.
“I won’t let you get away with this!” roared the attacker before spitting on William’s face.
“And I won’t let you endanger anyone else,” she replied before electricity surged up her arms and through the attackers body. The man shuddered, howled, and fell unconscious.
“I’m sorry Lara, but I think this interview is concluded.”
“Yes,” agreed Lara. “I’m sure the police will need you for processing.”
“I hope your employers are happy with how everything turned out. The ratings shall be fantastic.”
“Yes Mz. Williams I’m sure you’re right.” But did you get what you wanted too?
***
That is all for now my dear readers, Mz. Williams, Lara and all the rest will return when we release more tales of Junction City. Until then, take care and good reading my friends.
~S. Wallace