Chapter XII: Lies! All Lies!
The next Thursday, Therese had her usual meeting with security. This time, she issued a new decree. No RAW employee was allowed into the building without her consent. All those who were not SmackDown! employees needed to sign in, backstage pass or not. The intent was to monitor who was coming in. Bischoff couldn't possibly be leaving the notes himself without being seen. Then again, he had fooled everyone dressed as the priest for Billy and Chuck's fake wedding. She had to keep Stephanie safe without scaring off the culprit. The second part of that was the hardest, but she was determined nonetheless.
Stephanie was unnerved when she stood in the circle of security staff with Therese as Therese issued her dictum. The minute they were alone she immediately demanded to know why this sudden change. Therese's comment was that they had been at this for three weeks and that was three weeks too long. Another step needed to be taken and this was next on the list. Therese didn't dare tell her that Bischoff was currently under investigation—or what could be considered investigation since it had to be done so covertly.
Stephanie's nerves were already on edge because of the lie detector test. Vince McMahon arrived as the show started and felt the need to stop in the office. Stephanie and Therese were going to talk with the officials regarding the lie detector and they had nowhere to hide. Vince cockily strode up to them and stopped with a goofy grin on his face. Therese stepped closer to Stephanie and waited, hoping he would have his say out and leave. He shook his head, the grin getting wider—if that was possible. He pointed at her and opened his mouth to say something but instead gave a short laugh, shook his head, and waved her off. Stephanie was glowering at him as he headed back in the direction he came and the two continued on.
Stephanie allowed the administrators to set her up with the lie detector. The man on her right asked, "Is your name Stephanie McMahon?"
"Yes." The detector signaled a correct answer.
"Have you ever cheated on your taxes?"
She quickly slipped out of the cuff with a nervous laugh. "You guys go right for the gusto." She then checked with both men as to their functions regarding the test. Clapping her hands together, she asked, "Are you ready?"
Therese finally let out the laughter that had been welling up for over a week. "I did cheat once back when Hunter and I got together. Okay?" Stephanie spoke in an angry hush to Therese only.
"That's not what I'm laughing at," she barely got out between chuckles. Stephanie said nothing as she waited for Therese to elaborate. "Those things aren't even admissible in court in most states. That's how unreliable they are, so I don't know what you're so worried about."
"Let's hook you up to one of those things and see how you do."
"Any day, sister," the blonde replied with a laugh and stood up from her seat.
Stephanie called the official back over and demanded he try it again on Therese. Therese laughed under her breath and allowed herself to be hooked up to the machine. "I'll ask the questions." The man backed off and waited to read the results. "Is your name Therese Blair?"
Therese laughed. "You're going to have to do better than that."
"Fine. Do you reside in Atlanta, Georgia?"
"Yes." The machine dinged a correct answer.
Stephanie looked annoyed. "Would you rather be somewhere else than here?"
Therese cocked her head sideways as if in thought. "No." Another correct answer, even though it was a lie.
Stephanie figured out what she was trying to do. "Okay, Miss Blair. Do you have tickets to the World Series?"
Therese choked back a laugh. "No."
"No, no, I mean, do you have tickets to the Stanley Cup?"
"No." The machine signaled a correct answer.
"Do you hate hockey?"
"Yes." The lie detector test had yet to catch her in a lie.
"Damn it! How do you do that?"
Therese shrugged out of the wires. "Easy. We'll talk as we walk." Once outside in the hall, she explained. "Lie detector tests measure anxiety, basically, by monitoring things such as blood pressure and heart rate. It's thought that a person becomes more anxious when lying and the body reflects that. As for me, I wouldn't be here if I couldn't lie as well I do."
"I have to talk to Hogan," Stephanie quickly responded to the explanation and began patting her jacket and dress to find her cell phone.
Therese held it out for her. "No pockets, remember?" She didn't acknowledge the comment and took the phone from her. As soon as the door to her office shut, she relayed the information to Hogan. He had sounded more confident on the phone after they had talked, but it wasn't enough to allay Stephanie's worries.
The moment came and Vince McMahon strutted down the ramp with that same, sick smile plastered on his face. He took up a mic and proclaimed how Hogan, in any form, would never be seen in a WWE ring after that night. The Chairman of the Board caught sight of Zach Gowen in the front row and had a few words to say. Stephanie cringed when he made the comment that, after the test, neither Hogan nor Zach would have a leg to stand on. Mr. America made his way down to the ring and settled in the chair that had been set up. After the wires and monitors were in place, Hogan looked more dejected than calm.
The questioning began. "Are you the man known as Mr. America?" asked the officer who had administered the trial-run on Stephanie.
"Yes." Easy enough, she thought.
"Are you currently sitting in a wrestling ring in Pensacola, Florida?"
"Yes."
Vince interrupted. "Ask him the question."
The officer declared a method to the test and continued on. "Are you currently employed on SmackDown!?"
"Ask the question!" erupted McMahon.
"Mr. America, are you Hulk Hogan?" Stephanie's breath caught in her throat as she waited to hear the answer. Hogan looked around him into the crowd for several moments without responding.
He opened his mouth to speak and everyone hung on the silence. "Can I have a drink of water?" Stephanie loudly exhaled.
McMahon fussed on and then stated, "I'll ask the question this time. Mr. America, are you Hulk Hogan?"
Hogan took less time to answer, but the response was different. "No." When the device dinged a correct answer, Stephanie beamed a smile and was able to finally stop her foot from nervously tapping.
"What does this mean?" McMahon angrily asked the administrator.
"It means he's telling the truth," was his reply. The officer asked the question again and Hogan answered even quicker. McMahon prodded him to ask the same question and Hogan immediately answered in the negative again.
"What the hell's going on?" McMahon ground out.
"What's going on, Mr. McMahon, is that Mr. America has passed his lie detector test," the administrator answered in a confident voice.
The officers unstrapped Hogan from the device. Even Zach had the look of shock on his face. This charade is getting ridiculous, Stephanie thought as Hogan paraded around the ring.
Vince was an interesting shade of red. He called Mr. America back into the ring, declaring that if Hogan could pass a lie detector test, then he could do it. As they hooked him up to it, he commented that the tests weren't admissible in court. Therese jabbed Stephanie with her elbow. She just shook her head and turned back to the monitor as Hogan began to question Vince. "Are you the biggest asshole on God's green earth?" At that question, Stephanie stifled a giggle.
"No." Another sound came from the machine—an incorrect answer. "I am?" McMahon muttered, more to himself than anyone.
"Are you a sick, perverted, power-hungry freak?" Now, Stephanie had to laugh. For every word McMahon said, the buzzer sounded a wrong answer. Before Hogan left the ring, he decked Vince and strutted up the ramp.
The knock at the door was not who the young GM wanted to see. Therese was ready this time and quickly stepped out of the way before he slammed the door into her.
"I'm beginning to wonder what's going on around here," McMahon stated, eyeing his daughter down.
"What do you want me to do? You don't believe me. You want me to take a lie detector?" She added the last question to pour more salt into the wound.
"Things are gonna change around here," he stated. "Yeah, next week, things are gonna get changed, alright. For the better." Stephanie stared at him as he walked off, trying to discern what his words meant. He muttered "smartass" before he got out the door.
A silent Therese spoke up after seeing the look on Stephanie's face. "Don't let him get to you. He's just pissed and will say anything. Let it go. If you don't, you won't sleep." Stephanie gave her a half-hearted smile and settled down at the desk to absentmindedly shift papers around. Even Vince's limo being impounded because he was parked in a handicapped spot, along with Gowen rubbing it in, did nothing to alleviate her father's comment.
Another tally mark was added to her side of the chalkboard. However, she was worried that that the one-up would be tied and surpassed come next week.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Friday was taken up with flights and naps and neither Stephanie nor Therese said much about their respective dates for Saturday night. The two had fought like cats and dogs all week about Stephanie setting her up. Therese had stated over and over that she was not there to 'get a man' but do a job. Stephanie finally blew up, yelling at Therese that she couldn't stand her anymore and just wanted to get away from her. That had instituted the silent treatment until SmackDown! the night before. In a moment of civility, Therese agreed to Shane coming to stay with Stephanie in the hotel room while she was gone and they both agreed that not a word was to be spoken to her boss ever.
Therese was an early riser and started a coffee pot in the percolator to entice Stephanie to wake up. Usually, the brunette was up with the sun unless she had nothing to do for the day. Therese expected her to sleep late but she needed her up and ready to go. This was the first day that they had had to do anything for themselves and Therese needed it. She quietly pushed the adjoining doors open farther as the smell of brewing coffee wafted through. Stephanie appeared at the door with a robe on and holding out a mug with the hotel's logo. She hadn't been able to go back to sleep since sun rise and then the rich smell had compelled her into the next room.
"What brought this moment of kindness on?" Stephanie asked, pulling back the balcony curtains of the room and settling in a chair.
Damn, I'm caught. "We've got shopping to do, remember?"
"What?"
"You were talking Monday about having to buy another pair of black heels because you scuffed up the only pair you have with you. We agreed to go shopping for them today." The only truthful part of the conversation was that Stephanie had scuffed up her heels and, in passing, commented that she needed another pair. Her face was still clouded but, in a moment, she gave up in trying to remember.
"Okay. When are we leaving?"
"When you're ready," Therese, answered, which sounded like more of a question than a statement.
Stephanie proceeded to sip the rest of the coffee, gazing out over the balcony. There wasn't much to see. She was just enjoying the feel of the morning sun. Therese flipped through the yellow pages in search of the particular stores for which she was looking. She kept glancing at Stephanie, mentally rushing her through the mug. Eventually, the diva rose and made her way back into her own room. The day was going to be a long one as she waited for her date with Shawn. Therefore, she was taking her time, hoping that the more she took of it, the faster it would fly.
The chauffer was from Anaheim and they were on their way to the mall. After the first five clothing stores that Therese had gone into determinedly but walked out empty-handed, Stephanie pried out of her what she was looking for. "A scarf?" Stephanie laughed until she guffawed. "Have you checked your calendar lately? It's May. You are not going to find one. Even the clearance racks won't have them." Therese glared at her but continued to pull her into every store in hopes of finding the elusive item.
By the early afternoon, the exhausted women returned to the hotel, a couple of bags a piece between them. Stephanie had found her replacement shoes, a few other items, and a flattering peasant blouse that she had intentions of wearing that night. Therese pulled out the Anaheim jersey with Giguere's name and number and laid it out on the bed. The scarf to help keep her warm was still non-existent. She was thrilled about being at the game but also knew that the butterflies were for another reason.
Not long before Kevin was to arrive to pick up Therese, Stephanie called Shawn. She had to convince him not to tell Therese about their plans. She said that she had promised Therese that she would stay in and rest and would be in major trouble with her if she reneged on her promise. Shawn commented that he would leave her to her relaxation. She quickly told him that she was feeling better but that Therese thought she still needed to turn in early. Shawn finally agreed to not mention their date to Therese and to pass on the same to Kevin.
Therese came in on the end of the conversation but Stephanie was done with her business. "That Shane?"
"Yeah, he'll be here in about thirty minutes."
"I don't like that. I'll just wait 'til he gets here."
"Don't make Kevin wait. Come on, you can't exactly be twenty-four hour surveillance." Therese sighed and shook her head. "You're gonna make him wait as it is if you don't get dressed soon."
"This is what I'm wearing. I mean, except for the jersey." Stephanie glanced over her jeans, purple pullover, and sneakers.
"Yeah, that is definitely going to snag him."
"I'm going to a hockey game. You don't exactly wear a dress to this kind of thing. I am not freezing at the arean. It's bad enough that I don't have gloves or a scarf." She stomped off into her room and Stephanie followed.
"Well, can I at least fix your hair?" Therese ran her hand through the ponytail. She sat down at the vanity with a huff and pulled out the rubberband. Stephanie plugged in a curling iron and silently set to work, pulling up the top of her hair and curling the ends. "It's not amazing, but it's a major improvement."
Therese glared at Stephanie's reflection in the mirror. "Want to do my make-up too?" she sarcastically asked.
"Well, you know, you could use a bit more—" Stephanie abruptly stopped as Therese turned around to glare at her. "I'm just gonna go see what's on pay-per-view for me and Shane to watch…" She backed up a few steps and then disappeared.
When the knock came at the door, Therese had to still herself to keep from rushing to the open it. She took a few deep breaths and then turned the knob. Kevin Nash stood on the other side with a beaming smile. "Hi," he said a little sheepishly. "You ready?"
"Yeah, just a moment. Come in and shut the door." Therese grabbed the jersey from the bed and pulled it over her head as she headed into Stephanie's room. "I'm leaving." Then, she whispered, "Please, stay here and, please, don't persuade Shane to take you out."
Trust me, I won't try to persuade Shane to do anything. "I'll be fine. Just go and have fun." Because I'll be having fun myself. "We'll turn the game on and see if we can see you." A brief smile formed on Therese's lips but it was then replaced with one of the stern looks that she used on Stephanie as reminder to do as she said.
Kevin was staring at the skyline through the balcony doors when Therese came back in. "Alright. I think I'm ready," she said, patting her jeans pockets to make sure she had everything she needed—cash, credit card, and identification.
As soon as the door clicked shut, Stephanie shot up from the bed and quickly dressed. Still having several more minutes before Shawn arrived, she applied fresh make-up and another spray of perfume. As a stray hair was tucked away, quick taps sounded Shawn's arrival. She didn't hold herself back as much as Therese had. After checking the peephole, Stephanie jerked the door open as the butterflies jerked a knot in her stomach.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
TBC…