Chapter 8 – Things Are Boiling Up and Coming Out
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"So, Kelly and Kimberly are into each other?" asked Nancy as she talked to Tootie over the kitchen speakerphone while trying to rock her youngest baby to sleep.
"Hell, yeah! Girl, you shoulda been there. They were flirtin' and holdin' hands and all that."
"Really? Oh, my God!" said Nancy excitedly. "I wish I had been there!"
"Yeah, it was sumthin! It looked like they were gonna kiss!"
Nancy nearly lost it when she heard this bit of information. "Damn! I really wish I had been there! I just knew there was some kind of spark between them at the rehearsal."
Nancy's husband, Roger, was not too far away. He was in the workroom, reading up on some legislature, but he was able to hear the whole conversation. The conservative Republican was revolted that he had to listen to something like this, and he was also disgusted that his wife found the news exciting. "What a bunch of sickos," he muttered.
"Well, I gotta go, Nance," said Tootie. "That new show, Staten Island Cakes, is coming on!"
"Staten Island Cakes?" Nancy asked. She was completely puzzled.
"Yeah. Do you remember Vinny Buzzetta? The one who did Mark's birthday cake last year?"
"Yeah! I remember! It was an awesome cake!" said Nancy who reflected on her son's birthday cake.
"Well, he has a new show, so I'm gonna check it out. Check you later."
"Same here. Bye."
A few seconds after Nancy got off the phone, her husband walked into the kitchen.
"Did I hear that there was a fight between Jo and Blair and Molly?"
"Yeah, there was. First, Blair and Jo had a fight at the wedding rehearsal over one of Jo's bridesmaid choices. Then, when Jo left, Blair and Molly began yelling at each other."
"What a bunch of looney lezbos."
Nancy quickly got upset. "You know that Molly's not a lesbian. She's dating a guy!"
"Bullshit. She's a man-hating carpet muncher herself. I just don't understand how you can hang around all those queers."
"They're not queers, they're my friends. Besides Molly, Tootie's not gay and neither is Natalie."
"No, but those two are nothing but a couple of embarrassing liberal losers. They all have radical ideas about equality. Those repulsive homosexuals are trying to ruin our way of life. "
"Roger, they're just fighting for the same rights as everyone else."
"And that's the problem with the political system. Too many Democrats."
"No, the problem with the political system is that people like you who have skewed perspectives of reality are in positions of power."
"Mark my words, all your damn Democratic friends will screw society."
"Hey, Sue Ann was once a Republican, but it was morons like you who made her leave the party and become a Libertarian. Also, Blair's a conservative Republican, just like you, you idiot!"
Roger's voice quickly became more threatening. "Hey, what did I tell you about calling me an idiot among other things?" Nancy had a scared look after Roger raised his voice. She didn't think he would strike her, but he was known to have a bad temper when one threatened his authority. Roger then continued his tirade. "And don't you dare put that Sappho-slut in the same league as me. Blair may call herself a conservative Republican, but she's not true to the party platform. I can't believe she had the nerve to make that speech."
Nancy had an exasperated look on her face. "What does it matter to you? You're not in the New York State Senate."
"No, but whatever happens in New York will affect my district. There's only a river separating us from New York, Nancy. I hope you realize that. The next thing you know, those queers will try to force New Jersey into this sham."
Nancy completely lost it. "It's not a sham! Gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgenders deserve to enjoy the same rights as straights, and that includes marriage!"
"God made it clear that it's not right for two people of the same-sex to get married. He also made it clear that if you were born a man, you stay a man. If you are born a woman, you stay a woman. People who go against the holy doctrine are sick in the head."
"There's nothing wrong with them. They're all normal people who would function fine if society would just stop treating them like shit!"
"You're blaming society for their deviance? It's not society's fault that these people are sick."
"The only thing that's sick is how society views people who don't adhere to the norm."
"I can't believe you're really condoning the blatant disregard of social constructionism."
"Roger, you have no idea what you're talking about."
"Yeah, I do."
"What? Who's the sociologist here? Remember there's only one of us in this room who has a PhD in Sociology and it certainly isn't you!"
Unfortunately, they had gotten so loud that their kids could hear them from upstairs. The oldest boy commented to one of his siblings, "Mom and dad are arguing again."
"At least they're talking to each other..."
Downstairs Roger continued, "Yeah, you like to wave that meaningless lefty degree like a flag of accomplishment. You just love to rub it in my face, don't you? But let me ask you this – how long has it been since you did any real sociology work, huh?"
"Well, . . ."
"You can't answer that can you? You wear your worthless degree like a badge of honor, but you have nothing to show for it. If you were as good as you let on, you'd have your own practice by now. Well, where is it?" he asked as he raised his arms and looked around.
"I . . ."
"You don't have one, do you?"
"That's because we had four kids at the time and I didn't want the nanny to raise them by herself. I wanted to be a part of their lives, Roger. You know that!"
"Face it, Nancy, you're an immoral, degenerate, leftist loser! You're no different from the rest of those human blemishes on society that you hang around with."
Nancy was infuriated at this point. "And you're nothing but a fucking bigot! That's why Kimberly slapped you in the face when you called her a confused idiot."
"Speaking of Kimberly, did I hear correctly that that confused, druggie bi-slut is dating a woman now? One of Jo's low-life, sewer rat friends from the Bronx no less?"
At that moment, Nancy wanted to grab a frying pan and hit him across his face. Instead, she held her anger in check and spat at him, "You really are a piece of work. Here you're calling Kim a 'bi-slut,' yet you were trying to get me to have a threesome with her not that long ago."
Roger was starting to sweat because he remembered when he wanted to 'spice up his marriage' by convincing Nancy to have a threesome with him and another woman. When he heard that Kim just moved back from Los Angeles, he figured that it was his chance to live out one of his fantasies. Around the same time, Roger was trying to get Nancy to join in some swinger clubs, which she vehemently denied. Unlike some of her more adventurous friends, Nancy is very much straight.
Nancy was fed up with the argument. She knew that Roger would not admit defeat, but she couldn't listen to him put her friends down anymore. So, she decided to do the only thing that seemed like the best solution – she walked out of the room and headed straight to the front door.
"Where do you think you're going?" asked Roger.
"Anywhere to get away from you! Who knows, maybe I'll go visit Cindy and Sue Ann and have a lesbian threesome with them, since it seems that threesomes are what you're into nowadays. They could probably do a better job satisfying me than you ever could anyway!" With that final verbal jab, she slammed the door behind her and left the house.
Of course, Nancy would never even think about having sex with Cindy and Sue Ann, but she couldn't pass up the opportunity to ruffle Roger's feathers a little bit. It was just so pleasurable. Nancy had to find some ways to pleasure herself considering Roger wasn't so proficient in that area much anymore because he always had his head stuck up some political brass. Anyway, she had no clue where she was going to go as she got into her car. She just knew that she had to get away from that house for a while.
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Nancy was not the only person who was having problems with her partner. In New York, Blair was dealing with her own anxiety about seeing Jo again. The blonde was emotionally drained by the time she got home. Nothing that day went the way she had planned. She hated when she and Jo fought because they both knew the best way to hurt each other. Granted, the makeup sex was rather nice, but getting into such heated arguments just seemed to push them further and further apart. Blair took a deep breath before entering the home she shared with the love of her live, while preparing herself for the possible argument to come.
"Jo," Blair called once she had stepped inside. "I'm home."
When Jo failed to respond, Blair figured that she was just giving her the silent treatment. Sure, it was childish, but sometimes not saying anything was the best way to avoid an argument. The blonde went throughout the house, preparing herself for when she would finally find her lover. However, Jo was nowhere to be found.
Blair heaved a heavy sigh as she realized that Jo must have run off again. That was her answer every time. When things got tough, the tough got going right out of the door. It was silly that Jo would revert to her childish behavior of running away from her problems, but Blair learned that it was her way to deal with problems. Once she was given a little space, Jo would return. Blair decided to relax and wait for her lover to come home so they could discuss everything that happened that day.
Blair waited until well into the night, but still no Jo. There was not so much as a phone call to let her know that Jo was okay. Finally, Blair decided to call Natalie because, if Jo would contact anyone, it would be the reporter. Blair took a deep breath before dialing Natalie's number.
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When Natalie's phone started playing Madonna's "Material Girl," she flinched as she checked the id already knowing who was on the other end. She took a deep breath before answering.
"Hey, Blair. What's up?"
"Hey, Nat. Have you heard from Jo?"
"No. I haven't spoken to her since the wedding debacle." Natalie really hated lying to her friend, but she had to keep her promise to Jo. Being caught in the middle was no fun. It was as if she was the human rope in a game of tug-of-war. "Why do you ask?"
"Oh, I think she's run off again. I hate it when she does this to me. We really need to talk."
"Well, Blair. I don't know what to tell you."
"If she contacts you, will you call me?"
"You'll be the first person to know," assured Natalie.
"Thanks. You're a true friend. Bye, Nat."
Natalie shook her head, "Bye, Blair." The reporter felt horrible for flat-out lying to Blair because she knew she was hurting. However, Blair always landed on her feet.
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After getting no answers about Jo's whereabouts from Natalie, Blair decided to call Nancy, Sue Ann, and Kimberly and ask them to join her on a girl's day out of shopping. Shopping always made Blair feel better, so there was no reason to believe that it wouldn't work this time. Yet, Nancy and Sue Ann could sense that something wasn't quite right with Blair when they all met at Neiman Marcus in The Westchester mall. Of course, this did not necessarily fit most of the girls' tastes, but this shopping excursion was meant for Blair to take her mind off her missing lover. Thus, the girls silently agreed that they would make the best of it.
"So, Blair, which do you like better," asked Nancy as she held up two equally expensive looking blouses.
"Oh, they both look good," replied Blair with her chin resting on her hand. The blonde was currently sitting on a bench watching her friends try on different outfits. It was clear that something was wrong because she was usually the one modeling outfits for her friends. Today, she just wasn't in the mood.
"Come on Blair, which one do you think Roger will find more devastating? I really need to apologize for our argument last night."
"Hey, Nancy, it doesn't matter which one looks better on, it's which one he'd rather get off that counts," quipped Kimberly.
"You are so bad," admonished Sue Ann as she playfully slapped Kimberly on the shoulder.
"Tell me the best part of getting a nice outfit isn't taking it off in front of Cindy," Kimberly shot back.
Sue Ann blushed while Nancy just shook her head.
All of this talk about dressing and undressing for their lovers was just making Blair more and more depressed. She didn't even know where her significant other was at the moment. It just wasn't fair. Blair sighed as she watched her friends joking back and forth. Suddenly, Kimberly received a text and her demeanor quickly changed.
"Umm, guys," Kimberly started, "I'm sorry but I have to run off for a bit. Can I meet you guys later sometime?"
"Is everything okay?" asked Sue Ann.
"Yeah, everything's fine. I just have somewhere to go right now, but I'll catch up with you later. Oh, and Blair," Kimberly turned her attention to the downtrodden debutante, "enjoy yourself. Just have fun with your shopping spree, okay. Later."
The other girls watched as Kimberly disappeared. "What's with her?" asked Nancy.
"Who knows," said Sue Ann. "Hey, Blair, how about we get ready to go get some food? Ever since that whole dieting thing back in Eastland, I've learned to listen to my stomach and, right now, my stomach is saying it's about lunchtime."
"Wait, Sue Ann, can we have another twenty minutes or so. I have to find the perfect outfit for Roger to try to make up for last night. Please?"
"Well, it's up to Blair. Blair?"
"Oh, yeah, Nancy, take your time. We'll go grab something to eat as soon as you're ready."
Nancy smiled, but Sue Ann said, "But let's not be all day about it."
About thirty minutes later, Nancy finally said she was ready to make her purchases and go grab some lunch at the little mall food court on the fourth floor. Truthfully, Blair wasn't really hungry, but she knew she needed to keep her strength up.
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When Kimberly had looked at the text on her phone it read, "I'm at Starbucks Coffee, on the third level. Meet me there, cutie ;)." She knew that she was blushing, but she couldn't tell the other girls the real reason for her sudden departure. Based on what she saw the previous day at Blair and Jo's wedding rehearsal, it would have been an extremely bad idea to bring up Kelly's name. Kimberly didn't want to hurt Blair's feelings, but she felt drawn to the redhead from yesterday and she wanted to know if there was something behind that initial spark. So, she decided to leave Blair in the capable hands of Nancy and Sue Ann while she met up with her new friend.
As she arrived at Starbucks, she saw the redhead who had swept her off her feet only the day before. Kelly was sitting down, watching a YouTube clip on her phone while sipping on some vanilla chai latte. Kimberly thought it was so cute that someone would actually wait on her. Here they had just met and Kelly was already seeking Kimberly out. Kimberly felt herself blush again as she approached the redhead.
"Kelly! How are you doing?"
Kelly looked up and smiled. "Great. It's been a long time since I've been here, girl."
Kelly got up and gave Kim a hug. The hug felt magical for both of them, confirming that they were meant for each other. Neither one of them wanted to let go, but they both knew that they couldn't just hug each other in public for a long time with no repercussions. Although society was taking a step in the right direction with New York's legalization of gay marriage, there were still plenty of people who were against equality for all sexual orientations. Unfortunately, complete acceptance was still far from a reality, and gay couples still had to be careful. It was a sad truth that same-sex couples still had to fear ridicule and physical threats. With this in mind, Kelly broke the hug first.
"Really? So you've been here before?" asked Kimberly who was clearly surprised.
"Oh, yeah! I came here lotsa times during the 90s! Come have a seat, Kim."
Kim took Kelly's offer and sat down across from her.
"Sorry for being so rude. I shoulda asked you if you wanted something to drink?"
Kim smiled, "Sure. I love the Green Tea Frap here."
The girls got up and got in line to order Kimberly's drink. As they waited in line, they chitchatted for a bit.
"Do they have anything like this in Houston?" asked Kim. The rich debutante had never set foot in Houston before. She had visited Dallas a few times, but she had no idea if there was anything like this in the Houston area.
"Nah, not really," Kelly replied. "They try, but it ain't the same. You know, with Houston bein' a risin' city and all dat, they got their upscale malls, like the Galleria, which has a lot of nice stores, but it ain't nothin' like here. NYC is still the king."
Kim chuckled as she said, "Yeah. As impressive as Beverly Hills was, it's still nothing like Park Avenue."
"Oh, yeah, you did live in Los Angeles, didn't you?"
"For a good while," Kim confirmed as she gave a nonchalant shrug. People were always in awe when she told them that she used to live in Beverly Hills, but for Kim, it was nothing special.
As soon as Kim got her drink, she asked, "Hey, do you wanna go to American Eagle and check out some clothes?"
"Sure!" Kelly chirped.
For the next fifteen minutes or so, they spent their time in American Eagle. Kim was mindful of Blair's tendency to avoid most of the 3rd floor stores. She didn't think anything would happen, but knowing the friction that obviously existed between Blair and Kelly, Kim wasn't about to take any unnecessary chances. She really valued her friendship with Blair, but she also wanted to see where her blossoming feelings for Kelly would go. Thus, Kim decided that the best answer would be to keep them separated. Thankfully, Blair would have little need to venture this far up.
After a few minutes of shopping, Kimberly and Kelly agreed that they were both hungry, so they went to the food court on the 4th floor. There were a few really good food choices, but the truth is that they just wanted more time to talk and get to know each other. So far, they knew that they had similar tastes in clothes and they had an instant, natural attraction to each other. From their previous brief conversations, they knew that they apparently came from two different backgrounds, but they didn't know much more than what they had a chance to divulge. Thus, a lunch for two was the perfect ticket to get even better acquainted. They sat down so they could chitchat some more.
"So, you said you've been here before?" Kim asked.
"Yeah."
"But isn't this a bit upscale for you?" Kim didn't mean to sound harsh, but it was hard for her to imagine a poor Bronx native shopping in such an upscale area, unless…
"Well, I had a lot of money back in the 90s," answered Kelly.
"Really? What were you doing?" asked Kim.
"Umm… distributions," Kelly muttered in embarrassment. She really didn't want to go into full details about her past "occupation." She was afraid that this wasn't the right time, and that the truth about her past had the potential to drive a wedge between their growing friendship.
Kim, however, was no dummy. She was far past the innocent, naïve, sheltered girl from Park Avenue. She immediately knew what Kelly meant by "distributions," but before she could press any further, Kelly asked, "So, how long have you lived in LA?"
"Nearly 20 years."
"Wow! I bet you hobnobbed with all the stars there."
"Of course. I used to be a make-up artist for the stars in movies and TV shows," Kim informed Kelly in a matter-of-fact tone. Although Kelly seemed impressed with this information, Kim acted as if it was no big deal. Just like living in Beverly Hills, Kim saw nothing special about interacting with celebrities.
"Really?" Kelly then whispered, "So, uh, then you must know some hot, juicy rumors."
Kim simply chuckled. Sure, she knew a LOT of rumors, some of which involved her, but she always made it clear that, "What goes on in LA, stays in LA." "Sorry, Kelly," replied Kim, "but I'm sworn to secrecy. That means I can't tell you anything," she said with a smirk.
"Not even one tiny morsel of gossip?" Kelly begged like a little child. She even pinched her forefinger and thumb together to emphasize "small."
"Nope," answered Kim, trying her best not to laugh.
"Ah, okay, but what about the parties. I bet you went to a lot of parties."
"In fact, until I moved to LA, I didn't think it was possible to be exhausted from too much partying. However, LA proved me wrong," Kim stated as she slowly rolled her eyes. "There were all types of parties, and boy, did I party!"
"Now you make me wish I was there!"
"Why? Are you a party girl?"
"Pretty much. See, I grew up around boozin' and parties. My mother was a ragin' alchy who would get so drunk sometimes that she couldn't tell ya her own name. She'd also throw many private parties for her and her boyfriend of the evening."
"Wait. Do you mean your mom drank and had strange men over while you were in the house?"
"Hell, yeah. In fact, some of those bastards beat the shit outta me."
Kim was totally surprised by Kelly's confession. "What?"
"Yeah, some of 'em would beat me senseless, but she didn't care. She'd be so shit-faced that she couldn't see the truth. Even when I had the welts and bruises to prove it, my ma always took their side over mine. Shit, she'd just call me a liar who was jealous because she knew had to please a man."
"Gee, I'm sorry. It sounds like you had it rough," said Kim in a sympathetic tone. She always dreamed of a mother's undying love, but a mother like Kelly's made her second guess her fantasies.
"Eh, things weren't always so bad. Like I said, I could find myself a good party, too. When things got tough, the tough got goin' right out the door and on to the next party."
"Really? Where'd you go?"
"Anywhere I wanted. Wherever I was, was where the party was."
"Well, weren't there certain limitations due to your age?"
Kelly vehemently shook her head. "Nah, man. All ya needed was a card sayin' you were 18. I had one of 'em when I was 12."
Kimberly was clearly surprised at how quickly Kelly had to "grow up." Not only did her father's early departure and her mother's clear lack of concern force Kelly into premature adulthood, but it is possible that her lack of supervision led her down the path she took. Thus, it shouldn't have been shocking to find out that Kelly had a fake ID at such a young age, but it did.
"You mean you had a fake ID?" Kimberly gasped.
"Sure, I had a couple of 'em, in fact. You always wanted to carry a spare just in case someone got wise to ya and took it away. I could be as old as I needed to be so I could get into anywhere I wanted."
"But that's so dishonest."
"Well, I couldn't just be an innocent victim and let my mom's boyfriends keep treating me like a punching bag now could I?" said Kelly with a shrug.
"No," answered Kim softly.
Kelly looked down at her hands as she prepared to come clean to Kimberly. She knew that she had to tell Kimberly all the dark parts of her past if they were ever going to start an honest relationship. "Listen, Kim, the truth is, I did plenty of bad shit in my time."
"Oh, it couldn't be that bad," assured Kim as she reached over and gently grabbed Kelly's hands.
"I did far worse than you can imagine. I got in trouble for vandalism from the time I was nine, I stole everything from candy to records to vehicles starting at the age of three, I lied, I drank, I smoked, and I got into brawls. Heck, I was in a gang from the time I was ten."
"I know it sounds bad, but you had a hard life. It's nothing we can't look past or overcome," said Kimberly, who had plenty of skeletons in her closet as well.
"Listen, Kim, it gets much worse."
"How bad can it be?"
Kelly took a deep breath before continuing. "Look, Kim, I needa tell ya sumthin'."
"What is it, Kelly?" asked Kimberly nervously.
Kelly took another deep breath as she started to sweat. She was clearly worried that what she had to say could negatively affect their potential relationship. "You asked me how I was able to get the money to shop here, right?"
"Yeah."
"Well, I used to sell meth."
That revelation shocked the hell out of Kim. She had assumed that "distributions" meant that Kelly probably sold drugs, but meth was the heavy stuff. The news obviously had taken Kimberly aback.
"What?" Kim yelled.
"Yeah, back in the mid and late 90s, I used to sell meth. I was called the 'Meth Queen of the Bronx.' Later, I became known as the 'Meth Queen of NYC.' Everyone who was anyone knew to hit me up if they wanted the good stuff for the right price. I was Mrs. Walter White before Vince Gilligan even thought of him!"
Kim was clearly surprised by this recent revelation.
"I hope this news doesn't affect our friendship or whatever," said Kelly as she looked down in dismay.
"No, not at all. I'm just surprised that you had it in you."
"Hey, when you're broke, you'll do anything."
"That's true," replied Kim in an understanding voice.
"Listen, I can understand you being apprehensive about seeing a former drug dealer, but . . ."
"Hey, calm down. Listen, the truth is I'm no clean queen myself."
"Really?"
"During my time in Paris and LA, I was heavily into drugs and alcohol, just like you. I never dealt drugs, but I did coke, heroin, acid, and weed. The one thing I never did was meth."
"Wait, you did heroin?" Kelly was still shocked that Kim admitted that she did drugs.
"Yeah, and it was a bitch to get off of," said Kimberly in a matter-of-fact tone.
"I know how hard it is to kick. See, I did heroin, too."
"Really?"
"Yeah. Jo didn't talk to me for a while because of my drug addictions. It wasn't 'til I got busted in 2000 that she started speaking to me again. Honestly, she helped me out a lot in trying to get myself back on track. Apparently, she saw more potential in me than anyone else and she wanted me to make something of myself. I also think our best friend, Jessie's, death had something to do with Jo reaching out to me. See, Jessie died in a car accident while she was under the influence of drugs and alcohol. The indirect influence of drugs caused Jessie's death that year and she was only two years older than me. The news of her death was hard on Jo because there was nothin' she could do. I think Jo decided then that she would not let me die, too."
"Wow, I'm sorry to hear about your friend," said Kim sympathetically.
"Well, that the way many good people went," replied Kelly as she looked away to hide the sadness in her eyes. She really missed Jessie. Although Jessie's death had resulted in Jo and her getting her back in touch, the circumstances were not ideal.
Kim suddenly broke the awkward silence. "So, how long were you in jail?"
"Five years."
Kelly's answer took Kimberly by surprise. "Only five years! For pushing meth? Who the hell was your lawyer? Saul Goodman? I need his or her number for future reference!"
Kelly laughed. "Well, thanks to Jo I got a good lawyer. But you also gotta remember that back then, meth didn't have the dirty image it has now. Thank you, Walter White," said Kelly as she just shook her head.
"Yeah, he makes it look cool, when it isn't."
While Kim and Kelly were lost in their own world, the trio of Blair, Sue Ann, and Nancy arrived at the food court. Blair was trailing behind Nancy and Sue Ann because she was still just going through the motions. When they got to the top floor, Nancy and Sue Ann stopped dead in their tracks. Blair didn't realize that they had stopped short because she wasn't paying any attention. As she approached the other two girls, Sue Ann turned around, grabbed Blair by the shoulder, and turned her away from the food court.
"What are you doing?" asked Blair. "I thought you said you needed to eat something."
"Umm, there's a huge line and we didn't all want to stand there waiting. Nancy said she would get us a table and wait for the crowd to disperse."
"But where are we going?"
"Uh, I saw something in the sporting goods store when we passed it downstairs that I really need to check out – now."
Blair glanced at Sue Ann from head to toe and said in disbelief, "You? You want something from the sporting goods store?"
Sue Ann glared at Blair as she said, "Don't forget that I just happen to be into fitness and sports. However, what I need to check out is for Cindy. You know that she wouldn't want to be caught dead in a mall. Besides, every time I drag her somewhere to go shopping, people come up to her and bug her for an autograph or selfie. Since she likes her privacy as much as she can get it, I told her I would look for it for her while I was here."
"What is it?"
"Uh, um, uh," Sue Ann stuttered.
"Come on, Sue Ann, stop kidding around."
"It's some officially licensed apparel down in Lids."
"What?"
"Come on, it's just two stores down once we get off the escalator. It won't take that long and, by the time we get back, the crowd will have thinned out."
Blair was clearly getting suspicious of Sue Ann's behavior. "Sue Ann, you are so . . ."
About that time something caught Blair's eye. Right above Sue Ann's left shoulder, Blair spotted a distinctive redhead who was sitting with a brown-and-gray haired brunette. Both women were facing away from Blair. Although she couldn't see their faces, she knew exactly who they were.
"What the hell," Blair yelled suddenly.
Sue Ann tried her best to block Blair's vision, but it was too late.
"What is she doing here?" Blair snapped.
Blair started forward, but Sue Ann tried to hold her back.
"Blair. Blair! BLAIR!"
Blair struggled forward as she shouted, "Let go of me, Sue Ann!"
She pushed Sue Ann to the side and broke free. Then the disgruntled debutante headed over to Kelly and tapped her hard on the shoulder.
"What the hell are you doing here?" Blair spat.
At first, Kelly was surprised to see Blair standing behind her, but in a quick second her surprise turned to anger. How dare that bottle blonde intrude on her and Kim's time together? This was no open party where anyone could just crash without an invitation.
"It's a free country," replied Kelly with a scowl on her face.
"You shouldn't be here," asserted Blair with her hands on her hips.
Kelly was pissed that Blair would say something like that to her. She was thinking, "Does Blair really think that she owns this fucking mall? Granted, she may have a charge account at every fucking store, but that doesn't mean that she can decide who can and cannot patronize this mall. I don't see the name Blair Warner on this fucking mall and, the last time I heard, Ms. Muffin Head's last name was not Westchester." "Why? Who are you to stop me? Princess Di?" replied Kelly as she stood up and faced Blair.
The familiar insult that Blair had heard from Jo many times over the years, coming from Kelly's mouth infuriated the socialite even more.
"Don't you call me names," Blair yelled as she pushed Kelly into the side of a table.
Kelly had turned her attention to Kim as she was laughing at the Princess Di insult, so she didn't see it coming. The force with which she hit the table took Kelly by surprise, who didn't waste time pushing Blair back.
"You're lucky I don't give ya a shot," shouted Kelly as she pushed Blair.
"You barbarian," yelled Blair who pushed Kelly into the table again. This time she pushed her so hard that the table lifted and the condiments shifted.
Kelly couldn't stand for that, so she returned the favor again. This time Kelly pushed Blair so hard the blonde fell to the floor. "Shut it, Barbie doll before I rip your head off."
Now everybody in the food court was watching the spectacle. In fact, quite a few people grabbed their cell phones and started recording the catfight.
Kelly turned her back on a fallen Blair, thinking she had won.
Blair, however, took the opportunity to get up and charge Kelly. Unfortunately, Kelly's street sense alerted her in time and she moved out of the way causing Blair to slide across the table and end up on the floor again. Kelly walked over and stood above Blair. Some of the patrons were laughing as well.
"Had enough, Blondzilla?" smirked Kelly.
That was it. Blair had had enough. She grabbed Kelly by the shirt and pulled her down. Once they were both on the floor, Blair hopped on top of Kelly and grabbed her by the lapels of her leather jacket.
"No one treats Blair Warner like that."
She had drawn back her right hand as she prepared to punch Kelly right in the face.
"Now, I'll show you why."
Sue Ann came up behind Blair and grabbed the blonde's raised hand. Then, with Nancy's help, they began pulling Blair away. Kimberly knelt down by Kelly's side.
Blair couldn't believe her eyes. One of her friends was actually fraternizing with the enemy. By this time, Blair was clearly steaming. "Kimberly," she shouted, "it's either my wedding or her. Make your choice."
"Come on, Kel, let's go," said Kimberly as she helped the redhead to her feet.
Kelly had a satisfying grin on her face as they started to walk away.
"What! Why you traitor. You mean you're going to take that ruffian's side over mine? If you do, Kimberly, you can just forget about being one of my bridesmaids."
Kim immediately shot back, "Fine. Fuck you and your damn wedding. Go find yourself another dumb bitch to be your bridesmaid."
Blair was shocked and was left standing speechless as Kimberly and Kelly left the food court. No one ever had the gall to say no to Blair Warner. Even Jo usually conceded when they had differing opinions. Yet, Kimberly openly stood up to the socialite and told her off. As soon as Kimberly and Kelly were out of sight, Blair just crumpled to the floor. She began howling and shaking. Despite, Sue Ann and Nancy's best efforts, it was clear that Blair was inconsolable. After at least a five-minute tantrum, Blair slowly got up and left with her friends.
The mall event gave Blair a feeling that she would never want to remember and was an incident that she would soon want to forget; however, the power of technology would not allow this public outburst to simply be swept under the rug. Unlike the episode at the wedding rehearsal, Blair could not threaten videographers with injunctions and civil suits against unlawful distribution. The number of people who witnessed the event were way too many to suppress. The number of patrons who were present and who had recorded the incident were in the hundreds; however, one in particular was smiling with malice. She was wearing a white hat with a white Chanel dress and a pair of Chanel designer boots. The bottle brunette was all grins. "I finally got you, Blair."
88888888
After the mall episode, Nancy and Sue Ann thought that it was imperative that they call an emergency meeting. They called Molly to see if they could all meet at her place. Of course, the redhead agreed because she was the only one who didn't have to worry about any children, and she also lived in nearby White Plains. All of the girls were worried about Blair because her behavior was so erratic. They knew that the blonde was missing Jo and, since none of them claimed to have heard from the brunette, they decided to call a meeting in an effort to ferret out Jo's whereabouts. Natalie was very nervous because she knew that Molly was an expert at reading body language. In fact, at Eastland Molly was known as the human lie detector. The reporter knew that she couldn't lie to Molly about hearing from Jo, but she really didn't know the location of the detective. Secretly, she had tried an app on her phone that could tell her if a "Jo Polniaczek" was registered at any hotel, motel, bed and breakfast, campground, or any other establishment in the United States that provided sleeping accommodations to guests. Unfortunately, she had come up empty. That meant that Jo was not registered under her own name. Natalie was just afraid that the others would think she was blatantly keeping Jo's location a secret.
In addition to Molly, Tootie, Natalie, Nancy, Sue Ann, and Cindy, Bailey, Sister Meg, Kimberly, and Kelly were invited. It was truly an intervention without the subject combined with a seek out mission. Bailey was all too happy to help her sister. She knew how Blair could get when things didn't go her way, and it wasn't pretty. If things were already as bad as the others said they were, then Bailey knew that Blair would soon go crazy. Blair's younger sister wished that she could have had first-hand experience of what was going on, but she missed the rehearsal due to a doctor's appointment. As a result, she based everything off of hearsay; however, Blair's reactions were highly possible. Sister Meg could also shed some light onto Blair's strange behavior because she had first-hand experience as well. Since she knew Blair as a teenager as well as a step-sister, she could explain to the others why she acted the way she did in certain situations. However, Sister Meg was going to be busy at the monastery, considering it was a Sunday afternoon. It was a hard decision, but Sister Meg chose God over Blair. This was not exactly true because she would never turn her back on family in a time of crisis, but she would be available later to help with Blair's problem. Besides, this was not the first time Blair had such a breakdown, and Sister Meg knew that there would be ample time to lend her hand. Her choice would allow her to accomplish both of her missions.
Once they all arrived, with the exception of Kimberly and Kelly, they sat down around a table. Immediately all eyes turned to Natalie.
"Natalie," Sue Ann started, "do you have any idea where Jo is?"
"No," answered the reporter.
"You mean to tell us," started Cindy, "that Jo has not contacted you once since the rehearsal?"
Natalie looked down and away as she said very quietly, "No."
Right away, Molly could tell that the reporter was not telling the whole truth.
"Natalie," interjected Nancy, "you don't understand. Blair is completely out of it. You should have seen her today."
"Yeah, she about ripped Kelly's hair out at the mall. She was kicking and screaming and blaming Kelly for everything," put in Sue Ann.
"Then, she just broke down after Kimberly and Kelly left. She collapsed to the floor and began crying uncontrollably. It was a mess," said Nancy.
Bailey sighed. "That's my sister, alright..."
Molly was watching all the girls' body language the whole time and knew they weren't lying. However, Sue Ann and Nancy had a reputation for blowing things out of proportion a little bit, so the sources were not fully reliable. She decided to keep quiet for the time being.
"Girl, if they're telling the truth, we gotta find Jo. Blair could go ballistic," said Tootie just so she could be part of the conversation.
"Yeah, Nat. Blair is going out of her mind – more so than usual. Where's Jo?" demanded Cindy.
Natalie looked away from everyone and claimed, "I told you, I haven't heard from her."
Molly noticed the direct attempt to avoid eye contact, which is a clear sign of deception.
"Umm, Nat, can you join me in the kitchen to get everyone something to drink? Is punch okay with everyone?"
All the girls nodded in agreement, so Molly and Natalie headed to the kitchen.
"Whew, thanks, Molly. I owe ya one."
Molly gave Natalie a stern look as she replied, "Nat, I know you're lying."
"What?"
"Come on. How long have I known you?"
"For over 30 years."
"And you don't think I know when you're lying?" asked Molly in a pragmatic tone.
"Me? Lying? About what?"
Molly folded her arms in front of her chest and looked at the reporter with contempt. "Don't even try to kid me, Nat. You know where Jo is or at least you know how to contact her."
Natalie was looking down and twiddling her thumbs. She was making it even easier for Molly to deduce that she was lying. "Umm, well . . ." she stuttered.
"Nat . . ."
"Fine. Yes, Jo called, but she made me promise not to contact her for a couple days. She needs some time to herself to get her mind right."
"Well, shouldn't you at least tell Blair that Jo's okay? I mean, she may be going out of her mind with worry," said Molly. Even though Molly had gotten into a verbal argument with Blair, she didn't want her long-time friend to be hurting. At the very least, Molly thought that Blair had the right to know that Jo was okay, just to ease the tension a little bit.
"Molly, I can't. I told Jo that I wouldn't tell anyone that she contacted me and I'm only supposed to call her if there's an extreme emergency. She's run off before, so Blair will be okay."
"I don't know, Nat. The others seem to be pretty adamant that Blair is close to losing it."
"Please, Molly, I beg you. Don't tell anyone. I will keep you updated on everything, I swear, but you can't tell anyone that I've spoken to Jo. Please." Natalie was in a desperate begging mode as she clasped her hands together and pleaded with Molly not to tell anyone.
"Okay, Natalie, but if this gets out of hand, I'll have no choice, but to tell them what I know."
"I understand completely. Thank you, Molly. Thank you," Natalie hugged the usually hands-off Molly.
Molly and Natalie rejoined the other girls and passed out the drinks. They acted as if nothing happened.
Luckily, the others didn't have time to continue interrogating Natalie because there was a knock on the door. When Molly answered the door, Kelly was standing there.
"Hey Kel, how are you doing?" Molly asked.
"I woulda been fine if Ms. Snobby Snoot didn't try to fight me today."
"Well, come on in and join the others. We just got started."
"Thanks, Red."
"It's Molly, Red," she wisecracked back to the other redhead.
"Hey, I coulda called ya Ginger," said Kelly as she snickered under her breath. Molly just tilted her head and glared at her fellow redhead. "Okay, okay. I'm sorry, Molly."
Kelly then went in and everyone greeted her before they all sat back down.
"Hey, wasn't Kim going to come with you?" asked Nancy.
"Yeah, but she had ta' leave, to see her father about sumthin.' However, we'll meet later on tonight for our first official date," answered Kelly as she wiggled her eyebrows.
All of them got excited as soon as Kelly told them that.
"Oh, my God, so is this for real?" asked Tootie, the ever-so-nosy-one.
"It is. I hope it leads to bigga n' betta things!" Kelly ended with a wink.
There were a lot of squeals from the women. The only male in the house, Jamaal, Molly's boyfriend of ten years, just shook his head.
"Y'all girls are so typical."
"Oh, be quiet, Jamaal!" said Molly.
"You must be a special girl, Kelly, because it takes a special person to deal with Kim!" Sue Ann jibed.
"Oh, stop it, Sue Ann! Kimberly may be a bit on the wild side," scolded Cindy.
"A bit?" Sue Ann responded, emphasizing the 'bit' part.
"Okay, a lot! But that doesn't mean that Kelly won't be able to handle her," finished Cindy.
"Ha. You guys don't know anything about me or my background, so how can ya assume whether I can or can't handle Kim?"
"Well, if you're anything like Jo, I bet you're not as dangerous as you let on," said Natalie. "In fact, I'd venture to guess that you put on this tough exterior, but inside you're not all that mean."
"Yeah, kinda like a sheep in wolf's clothing," put in Tootie.
"Dude, has Jo told you nothin' about her past?" asked Kelly.
"Well, she alludes to things, but never really explains them," said Sue Ann.
"Ha, that sounds like Jo. I doubt you know anythin' 'bout Jo before she went to Eastland," Kelly informed them.
Quickly, all eyes turned toward her. Natalie was the first to speak.
"So, what was Jo like before she attended Eastland?" the reporter asked.
"Tough and miserable."
"That sounds like Jo when she first got there," chimed in Tootie, "but we figured it was just an act."
"Lemme tell ya somethin', kid, it was no act. Back in the Bronx, me n' Jo would go and steal hubcaps and stuff just to make ends meet."
"Well, didn't her mom provide for her?" asked Cindy.
"As much as she could. But ya gotta understand that even workin' two jobs hardly paid the bills. There were days when Jo's mom couldn't bring home handouts from her job so Jo'd either go without or have to find a way to eat."
"Maybe that's why she was slightly skinny when she first came to Eastland," said Molly. "Not that she was ever fat of course."
"Yeah. Me n' Jo lived on three-square boloney and cheese sandwich meals – when we could afford it that is" relied Kelly.
"What would she do if she didn't have anything to eat?" asked Tootie.
"We'd either panhandle on the street or swing by Kimmelman's Candy Store and swipe a couple empty soda bottles and bring 'em back for the deposit money. It was an easy way to make a quick buck."
"Geez, I guess we never really knew how rough it was for Jo in the Bronx," said Nat.
"Yeah, and if that didn't work, we'd have to pickpocket from passing tourists. Ya could always tell when people weren't from around the city cuz they always looked lost. One of us would be a distraction while the other would slip in and outta their pockets. When Jess was with us, we were the Sticky Finger Trio."
"Jo stole money?" asked Nancy in disbelief.
"Money, jewelry, whatever was worth something. A couple times we even slipped into department stores and walked out with a five finger discount."
"You mean shoplifting?" asked Sue Ann.
"Yeah, but it wasn't like it was for keeps. We'd return the merch to the store for a price or sell it to someone else for cheap."
"So, that's why she was so calm about it back at Eastland," interjected Nat.
"What?" asked Molly.
"Well, the first year Jo was at Eastland, she lifted a Hawaiian shirt from Harrison's Department Store for Mrs. Garrett's birthday. Tootie and I was there for that one. However, she ended up working off the debt."
"Yep. That sounds like Jo. She always felt guilty about robbin' some poor, innocent stiffs. If she could find a way to square the deal, she'd do it in a heartbeat," replied Kelly.
"But how did you guys even meet?" asked Tootie. "I mean, she is older isn't she?"
"We basically grew up together. I can't recall when I first met Jo or Jessie, but the earliest time I remember was when I was six and they were eight. They were shooting rubber bands at me!"
The girls at the table laughed.
"We were all poor and none of us had a stable home life. My dad left my mom when I was only three and I didn't get along with any of my mom's boyfriends. When I was eleven, I went to my mom and pleaded for her to dump the guy she was with. He was a God damn, mother-fucking asshole, but she didn't listen to me. I told her she sucked as a mother for pickin' a man over her kid and that the only thing that sucked more was her suckin' dick. Immediately, she told me to get the hell out of her house. She was so drunk, she didn't know what was goin' on or remember what happened the next day. All I know was that she insisted I get the steppin' if I knew what was good for me."
The room went quiet.
Finally, Bailey asked, "What'd you do?"
"Jo let me crash at her place."
"What did Rose say?" asked Sue Ann.
"Oh, she wasn't home. I don't think she really approved of Jo hangin' out with me. She said I was a bad influence. In fact, she used to blame me for 'turning' Jo gay. Anyway, she was workin' a triple shift, so Jo and I got beer and went back to her place and crashed."
"I've always wondered," piped in Nat, "how'd you get the beer?"
Kelly just looked at the reporter and answered, "We got the beer. That's all you need to know."
"O-o-kay," Natalie replied nervously.
"That is so Jo," replied Tootie.
"Yeah, well, Jo is Jo," said Kelly in a matter-of-fact tone.
"Man, there's a lot about Jo we didn't know," said Nancy.
"The only thing ya need to know is that we completed each other. She, Jessie, and I were like the Three Musketeers. What one lacked, the others made up."
"What do you mean?" asked Bailey.
"Let's put it this way – Jo was the serious and tough one, Jessie was the strategic one who came up with all the money-making or stealing schemes, and I was the wild and adventurous one who was dumb enough to try to pull it off."
"I'm not getting you," said Natalie.
"Well, for example, one day we needed some scrap to buy some beer. Jo wasn't with us at the time. She was out doin' somethin' else. Anyway, Jess and I put our heads together and she came up with the brilliant idea to lift one of the Bronx Barbarians' bikes."
"Lift whose what where?" asked Sue Ann.
"She suggested we steal a rival gang members' bike."
"That's right. You were in the same the gang as Jo. The Young Dodos," said Cindy.
Kelly rolled her eyes before responding. This wasn't the first time she heard this type of stupid jab about their gang name. "Diablos. Yeah, we were usually kickin' it with our gang when we weren't home. We got super tight and we could count on each other. So, when Jess suggested liftin' a bike, I figured I'd have someone to have my back."
"So, what happened?" asked Bailey.
"Well, like I said, I was the adventurous one so I volunteered."
"What happened?" asked Molly in awe as she placed her chin in her hand.
"I snuck to their hideout. It was scary bein' alone on their turf, but I knew I could outrun and outsmart most of 'em. Anyway, they were standin' around, smokin' and talkin' bullshit, as usual. I crawled to the nearest bike and climbed up. After a little fiddlin' with the wires and switches, I was off."
"You hotwired a bike?" Tootie asked in amazement.
"Not just hotwired. Hotwired and lifted," responded Kelly with pride.
"What happened next?" asked Tootie.
"Unfortunately, one of 'em saw me and alerted the others. The chase was on."
"Weren't you scared?" asked Sue Ann.
"Yeah, shitless. But I made it back to our turf."
"And?" they all asked in unison.
"And what? You've seen Jo. Sure, we were outnumbered five to one, but no matter. Jo showed 'em what's what?"
"What'd she do?" asked Nancy.
"Let's just say they're lucky they left only missing a bike. I'm just thankful she came around right when I arrived. I coulda takin' one or two of 'em out, but not five."
"Dang. You led one dangerous life," said Bailey in awe.
"Oh, honey, that ain't nothin'. We were always gettin' into scrapes like that. Jess would come up with the ideas, I'd carry 'em out, and Jo'd save our assess. She had a rep that was bigger than the Bronx. People knew not to mess with us and, if they didn't, they'd soon get a quick education."
"Wow," they all said in amazement.
"Hey, we did what we had to do," said Kelly while shrugging her shoulders.
"Sounds rough," said Cindy. "Did you ever have any fun?"
"Oh, yeah. It was great growing up in the Bronx during the late 70s. Hip-hop was just blossoming. We used to go to a lot of block parties, house parties, or parties in abandoned buildings."
"Sounds kinda scary," said Nancy.
"Eh, not really. But many times I had to drag Jo and Jessie to some of those neighborhoods because they were made up of mostly blacks and Spanish people. Sorry, I mean African Americans and Latinos. Anyway, there were a lot of times we were the only whites there!"
"Didn't Willis and Kimberly go to some of those parties?" asked Tootie.
At that Kelly stopped for a second. "It couldn't be. I'd recognize that cutie anywhere."
"Well, she was a little different back then," added Natalie without saying much more.
"Hmmm. Anyway, our color and sex got us into some of the most restricted parties. The black and Latino men saw as "prized trophies." Havin' a white girl as a girlfriend was considered the ultimate, back then. So, they all wanted to please us white chicks. We were the perfect arm candy. The only problem was keepin' 'em offa us. Sometimes we had to hold 'em at bay, and by we, I mean Jo. We did pretty good keepin' their hands offa us and kept most of them from gettin' too grabby. However, many of the black chicks and Latinas got jealous cuz their men flocked around us. Some of them tried to jump us for stealin' their men, but we kicked their asses!"
"Man, it doesn't sound like it was so great a time," said Nancy.
"Are ya kiddin'. The hip-hop scene was great! We saw Whodini, Newcleus, Doug E Fresh, Kool Moe D, and the father of Hip Hop himself, DJ Cool Herc."
Jamaal, who was from Teneck, NJ, which is near the Bronx, spoke up and asked, "So, you're the redhead I used to see a lot?!"
"Probably! We'd go to those parties and always had a good time."
Molly's boyfriend interjected, "But many of those parties were straight-up ghetto where drugs, fights, and alcohol were not uncommon. Not to mention, many of the dudes there were thugs."
"Yeah. So?"
"So, you three young, white chicks attended those parties on your own?" asked Jamaal in a skeptical tone.
"Yeah. Why?" Kelly asked nonchalantly as she just shrugged at the question.
"They're dangerous."
"Yeah, but you went, right?"
"Well, yes, but I wasn't a young, white girl. They knew who I was, and they knew my crew, so they knew not to mess with us."
"Dude, we had Jo. Ya shoulda known her rep back then. She was just as good as havin' three straight-up hood thugs."
"I remember her rep, but that doesn't mean you couldn't have easily gotten in over your heads. Those hoods were known for some real fucked up shit," asserted Jamaal.
"I'm not sayin' we were always smart. In fact, we used to do some real dumb shit when we were either drunk or high. Like one time, I was able to get this awesome weed from a Jamaican. So, me, Jo, and Jessie, smoked it while downing a couple bottles of gin and a six-pack of beer. It was during that time that Jo came up with this alter ego named 'Jinny Exstead.'"
Everyone in the group laughed.
"Jinny what?" Natalie asked.
"Exstead," replied Kelly. "It was J-I-N-N-Y E-X-S-T-E-A-D. Like I told ya, we had some good weed that day!" Kelly smiled while everyone else at the table laughed. Kelly continued, "She was saying, 'nothing makes me feel better than a bottle of gin and some ecstasy.' And somehow, outta dat, came 'Jinny Exstead,'" Kelly ended with a laugh.
"Yeah, you gotta be pretty high and drunk to come up with a name like that," deadpanned Bailey.
"You're not kiddin' kiddo!" replied Kelly as she continued to laugh.
"But ecstasy?" Bailey asked in shock. "Isn't that dangerous especially when mixing it in an alcoholic cocktail?"
"Yeah, but we knew what we were doin'. It was the New Wave Movement so we had to jump in."
"But ecstasy wasn't that easy to get, was it?" asked Cindy.
"They weren't as common as they are now, but you could get them in Studio 54 and Paradise Garage."
Almost all the women's eyes bulged in surprise when she said "Studio 54" and "Paradise Garage."
"You mean you and Jo got into..." Tootie asked in shock.
Kelly put her hand up in a stop position and smiled. "That's another story for another time."
As Kelly was still talking with the girls, Natalie quickly pulled out her iPad2 and took down the name 'Jinny Exstead.'
"It's only a hunch, but it just might work," Natalie thought.
88888888888888888888888888
Later that night as Natalie was taking the train back to her home, she started to do some investigating. Sure, she promised Jo that she would not call unless of an emergency, but according to the others it sounded like Blair was losing her mind. She was so on edge with everybody and no one seemed to be able to talk her down. Blair refused to listen to anybody and no one could make her see sense. Of course Blair had a tendency to lose her temper when she didn't get her way, but the scene that the other girls described didn't seem like Blair at all. After talking to Kelly, everyone was left with the question "Why did Blair have so much pent up animosity toward the redhead?" Nat knew about some of their history, but it still didn't seem enough to physically attack Kelly – especially in public. Blair's personal affairs had already run the risk of being televised from the recorded fight at the wedding rehearsal, but now she had lost it in front of thousands of people who all had the means to tape the spectacle with their personal video recording devices. Everything was just getting out of hand, so Natalie began to put a plan into action. The first step was to track down Jo's actual location. The second step was to contact the network responsible for Nancy's reality show and talk to the producer whose name she had recorded on her iPad2. The trick was to convince him to send her a copy of the fight so she could show it to Jo. If Jo saw how Blair was acting, there was a good chance that she would return home.
Natalie searched for the name "Jinny Exstead" through the same private Internet application she used to look for the name "Jo Polniaczek." This time, the name of The Settlers Inn appeared as a potential match. It took more than three minutes to get the results, but at least there was a possibility. Based on the location of the inn and the rarity of the name that was registered, Natalie hypothesized that this was the most likely place to find Jo. Just to be sure, she did another search for the name "Jinny Exstead" and narrowed the search results down to the upper eastern part of the United States. Natalie didn't think Jo would go too far out of her comfort zone. The reporter then cross-referenced the results to all the people with that name who were registered at temporary sleeping accommodations. The Settlers Inn appeared to be the only possibility matching all of Natalie's specific parameters. With this information, she could try to investigate her lead. Unfortunately, Natalie was scheduled to go to work the next day and all the other girls had work or their families. Not to mention the fact that Natalie didn't really want to admit that she had been in contact with Jo. The first person who came to mind was Molly. Natalie had already admitted to the redhead that she had talked to Jo, plus, Molly didn't have a family. However, Molly was going to be busy at work. So, Natalie had another idea – Kelly. Kelly was a good friend of Jo's and if anyone could convince the stubborn Bronx native to return home, she could. Plus, since she's on vacation for the next two days, she's available for the trip. Natalie knew that Kelly had a date planned with Kim, but if she could call her quick, it wouldn't interrupt. Natalie dialed the number that she just learned the other day. Kelly immediately answered the phone.
"Yo," answered Kelly.
"Kelly?"
"Speaking."
"Hey, this is Nat."
"Oh, hey, Nat. What's up?"
"Listen, could you do me a huge favor?"
"Depends."
"Look, I know you're not fond of Blair . . ."
"You bet I'm no fan of that bleach blonde . . ."
"Okay, Kelly, I know, but this is about Jo."
The mention of her friend's name stopped Kelly's tirade.
"What about Jo?"
"Well, she's been out of reach of everybody and I think she should be checked on." Natalie deliberately left out the fact that Jo had already contacted her and she knew how to reach the Bronx native in case of an emergency.
"Okay. But if she's not reachable, than that probably means she doesn't wanna be reached," answered Kelly matter-of-factly.
"Yeah, but I know her and Blair. She has to be missing Blair just as much as Blair's missing her. However, she's too hard-headed to just give in."
"I agree."
"So, Kelly, I was hoping you'd go and see if you could convince her to come back. If anyone can, you can."
"Dude, we don't even know where she's at."
"I might."
"How?"
"I searched that name – Jinny Exstead – and found someone registered under that name at The Settler's Inn in Pennsylvania."
"And you want me to go and try to bring her back?"
"Yes."
"Man, I gotta date."
"I don't mean tonight. I was thinking tomorrow. See I have an idea and you'd have to swing by my place before you head out. What do you say? For your old pal, Jo?"
"Oh, alright. Tomorrow. Right now, I gotta date."
"Thank you Kelly, oh, and good luck."
With that, they hung up. One thing was off Natalie's list. Now she had to call the producer of Nancy's show and convince him to send her a copy of the video showing the fight between Blair and Molly. She opened her iPad2 and looked for the name 'Steve Foster.' Unfortunately, this name was a lot more common than the name Jinny Exstead. "Of course it couldn't be that easy," Natalie thought to herself. After considering her options, Natalie decided to use LinkedIn to find his phone number. Despite her ingenuity, the name "Steve Foster" was still too common. As a result, she narrowed her search down to producer and got a number. She then took that number and searched it along with the name of Nancy's reality television show. Once she confirmed that it was a match, she gave him a call.
"Hello, Steve Foster of Realview Mirror Studios."
"Hello, my name is Natalie Harper, and I know you have footage from Ms. Blair Warner's wedding rehearsal. I need to send a copy to her partner."
"I'm afraid I can't, Mrs. Harper. Ms. Warner informed me that she is an attorney, and she can sue me for unauthorized distribution."
"Actually, I'm not planning on mass distribution; I'm planning to show the footage to Ms. Polniaczek, Blair's partner."
"Wait, you know where she is?"
"I do, but I was sworn to secrecy. I think she needs to see that footage to see how bad the situation has gotten. Wait," Natalie suddenly stopped, "how did you know that Ms. Polniaczek was missing."
"Um, confidential sources say that TMZ will be airing a segment on Ms. Warner soon. The big scoop is that her finance has disappeared right before their wedding and no one knows where to find her."
"Well, I know how to contact her, but I need your help."
After a while of negotiation, they came to an agreement.
"Okay, Mrs. Harper, I will send you an email that has a link to a web page containing the video. It will be password protected and you are only authorized to share that info with Ms. Polniaczek. In return, you will give us details of Keith Olbermann's behind-the-scene antics. Understand?"
"Understood."
Natalie hung up knowing that her plan was in place, but the news of a potential TMZ segment unnerved her. Hopefully they weren't too late and this situation hadn't gotten out of their control.