Time to Bring Her Down
At the Aetherium Awards ceremony, I sat in the darkest corner of the auditorium, just wanting a glimpse of her moment of glory.
And then, the spotlight found me.
I was about to stand up and say that helping her achieve her dreams was its own reward, that I expected nothing in return.
But she faced the cameras, tears streaking her perfect makeup, her face a mask of humiliation.
I want to thank that man, she choked out, for teaching me that the only way for a girl to be safe is to become powerful.
He used his charity as a leash, demanding I repay him in ways I could never stomach.
To all the girls out there we have to stand together. We have to protect each other.
The room exploded. In an instant, I was drowning in a sea of outrage and disgust.
The lights of the Aetherium Awards were a supernova of flashing cameras and blinding strobes. I sat in the last row, hidden in the shadows, a faded photograph clutched in my hand. It was taken ten years ago, deep in a forgotten pocket of Appalachia. A scrawny girl named Daisy, dressed in threadbare clothes, was holding half a hunk of dry cornbread, but her eyes burned like stars.
Back then, she could barely string a sentence together. Now, she stood on the most prestigious stage in the industry, about to accept the award for Best Actress.
When the host announced the name Seraphina Reyes, I straightened instinctively.
She was a vision in a couture gown, her makeup flawless, a swan gliding under the lights.
I thought she might mention methe anonymous benefactor who had supported her for a decade, paid for her sisters leukemia treatments, helped her get into film school, and even founded an entire production company just for her, to avoid any appearance of impropriety.
The next second, her gaze locked onto mine. A spotlight shot across the auditorium, pinning me in its glare, so bright I had to squint.
Theres someone here tonight I have to give a special thank you to, she said into the microphone, her voice trembling with practiced emotion as tears welled in her eyes. Ten years ago, he used the pretense of sponsorship to harass and control me. Tonight, standing here, I want to tell every girl watching: the only way to protect yourself is to become famous!
The room erupted. The sound of camera shutters was like machine-gun fire.
I was frozen in my seat, the photograph nearly slipping from my numb fingers.
He thought because he gave me money, he owned me! she cried, pointing a perfectly manicured finger in my direction, her voice thick with rage. Winning this award tonight is my proof that I did this on my own! My success has nothing to do with his handouts!
The live stream chat went into a frenzy:
OMG! What kind of scumbag does that?
Poor Seraphina! Im so glad she made it through that!
Someone find out who this predator is! He needs to be canceled NOW!
On stage, Seraphinas face was flush with triumph, her eyes burning with an undisguised hatred aimed directly at me.
I opened my mouth, desperate to ask her why, to explain the truth of the last ten years, but I was already being swarmed by reporters, their microphones like weapons.
Id been in this business long enough to know that any explanation would be twisted and useless. I closed my mouth.
I took one last, long look at Seraphina, then turned to leave.
As I stood, I felt a thousand pairs of eyes on mea mixture of contempt and morbid curiosityas I walked towards the exit.
Id just reached the backstage area when a foot shot out from the side, tripping me. I wasnt expecting it and went down hard, a sharp, searing pain exploding in my knee.
Wincing, I looked up. It was someone I knew.
Chase, the new rising star my company was heavily promoting, and Seraphinas latest on-screen love interest.
Sir, Im going to have to ask you to have some self-respect, Chase said, looking down at me with disdain. Seraphina is a star now. You cant just harass her whenever you feel like it.
Seraphina had finished her speech and walked over, looming above me with a mocking smirk. Leo Gordon, stop overreaching. I looked you up. Youre just some nobody with a tiny production company. You really think youre in any position to be my benefactor?
Her face was serene, but her words were daggers.
A cruel smile played on her lips. She paused, then raised her voice intentionally. Oh, and by the way, all those letters you sent me over the past decade? I burned every single one. Just looking at them made me sick.
I stared into her cold, merciless eyes, my heart feeling like it was being crushed in a fist.
Those letters they held my words of encouragement, the study materials Id compiled for her, the good news after each of her sisters chemo treatments. To her, all of it was just disgusting.
Security! Get him out of here! Seraphina shouted.
Two guards rushed over, grabbed my arms, and started to haul me away.
I struggled, looking back over my shoulder. I saw Chase give the cameras a subtle V for victory sign. I saw the flicker of a triumphant smile on Seraphinas lips.
And I saw the big screen behind her, playing her highlight reel. Under the section listing her management company, the name of the CEO was the same as mine.
As I was thrown out of the venue, my phone buzzed. It was a text from my assistant: Mr. Gordon, the company website has been hacked! Its flooded with hate comments about you!
I read the message, a bitter, complicated feeling swirling in my gut.
The company theyd attacked was the smallest one I owned. But Starlight Pictures, the company Seraphina was signed to, was a platform I had built from the ground up, entirely for her.
She thought winning that award meant she had everything.
She had no idea that everything she had was a gift from me.
The office was dead silent when I arrived.
My employees saw me and immediately looked down, avoiding my eyes.
My assistant ran over, clutching a laptop, his face pale. Mr. Gordon, its already blowing up. #LeoGordonIsAPredator is the number one trending topic. People have doxxed the company address. The entire street downstairs is blocked by reporters.
I sank onto the office sofa and opened my laptop.
The trending topic had a fiery EXPLODING tag next to it. Clicking on it revealed a torrent of abuse. Someone had found my photo and turned it into a series of humiliating memes.
Right below it was the hashtag for Seraphina and Chases new movie: #SeraChaseForever, filled with comments of love and support.
Sir, should we release a statement? my assistant asked timidly.
I shook my head and clicked on an encrypted folder. Inside was a video from ten years ago.
I had just turned eighteen. Disgusted with my fathers ruthless business practices, Id escaped to the countryside for a while. Thats where I met her.
She wasnt Seraphina Reyes then. She was just Daisy, a name as plain as the dirt roads she walked on.
In the video, ten-year-old Daisy was being shoved into the mud by her older brother while her mother beat her with a broomstick, screaming, Useless girl! Better off dead!
I had rushed in, pushed them away, and given them a wad of cash to let Daisy stay in school.
I remembered her clinging to my leg, whispering, Mister, I wanna learn. I wanna save my sister.
Chronically malnourished and forced to do heavy chores, the ten-year-old was nothing but skin and bones, except for her eyes. They were huge, dark, and searing.
Staring into those eyes, my heart had broken.
For the next ten years, I anonymously sent her money for living expenses, paid for her sisters leukemia treatments, hired tutors for her, and when she got into film school, I founded Starlight Pictures and poured all my resources into making her a star, all while keeping my distance to protect her reputation.
I thought I was helping her achieve her dream. I never realized I was nurturing a viper.
Mr. Gordon, you have a direct message from Chase, my assistants voice broke through my thoughts.
I opened the message. It was a photo. Seraphina was feeding my letters into a fire, a contemptuous smile on her face, illuminated by the flames. The caption read: Give it up, Gordon. Sera says your sponsorship was just a pathetic handout. She will never be grateful to you.
I closed my phone, my fingertips ice-cold.
They had planned this all along, waiting for this night to deliver the killing blow.
Ten years of support, and in her eyes, it was nothing more than charity, worthy only of scorn.
Notify all senior management. Emergency meeting tomorrow at 9 a.m. Seraphina, Chase, and their agents are to be present.
I stood and walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, looking down at the swarm of reporters below. And have the tech department restore the website. Dont delete a single comment.
My assistant stared for a second, then nodded. Yes, Mr. Gordon.
I gazed out at the city lights, the anger inside me having cooled into a calm, hard resolve.
Seraphina, you want to burn away your past as Daisy? You want to destroy everything I gave you? Fine. Ill be the one to drag you back to where you started and show you that without my handouts, you are nothing.
The next morning, I was mobbed by reporters the moment I stepped out of my car.
Mr. Gordon, is it true you harassed Seraphina Reyes for ten years?
Why did you use your money to control her?
Did you really burn her letters, as she claimed?
The flashbulbs were blinding. Security guards formed a human shield, wrestling me through the crowd and into the elevator.
When I entered the boardroom, it was already full.
Seraphina was seated near the head of the table, dressed in an expensive power suit, surrounded by a circle of fawning department heads.
Dont you worry, Seraphina, were all on your side, the head of marketing said with a greasy smile. That Leo Gordon is a lunatic. Were already drawing up his termination papers.
Exactly, the operations manager chimed in. When he gets here, well help you put him in his place.
Seraphina smiled smugly. When she saw me walk in, her expression instantly turned to ice. Leo Gordon. You still have the nerve to show your face?
I ignored her and walked directly to the head of the conference table.
The managers shot to their feet, pointing at me. You have no shame! Get the hell out!
Get out? I laughed. This is my company. Why would I leave?
Your company? Seraphina scoffed. She pulled a black credit card from her purse and tossed it onto the table in front of me. Heres a million dollars. Thats more than your little company will make in years. Take the money and disappear. I never want to see you again.
The black card spun across the polished wood and stopped near my feet.
A million dollars. A lot of money, to be sure.
I looked at the card and remembered three years ago, when her sister was critically ill and needed a bone marrow transplant. I was the one who spent the night on the phone with specialists overseas and paid the three-million-dollar surgery bill.
I remembered her crying on the phone then, saying, Thank you, Leo. I promise Ill repay you one day.
A million dollars? I bent down, picked up the card, and placed it on the table. Seraphina, your sisters surgery alone cost me three million. Do you really think this is enough?
Her face went deathly pale, but she quickly recovered her composure. Dont you dare lie! I raised the money for my sisters surgery myself!
Is that so? I began, but Chase suddenly jumped up and threw a stack of cash in my face. The bills fluttered to the floor around me.
Dont push your luck, Gordon! he snarled, jabbing a finger at me. Seraphina is doing you a favor by offering you money! You keep harassing her, and Ill make sure you never work in this town again!
Get him out of here! Seraphina shrieked. Where are my bodyguards?
The two guards shed brought with her moved towards me, ready to grab me.
I looked at them coldly. Are you sure you want to do that?
Just then, my phone, which Id placed on the table, rang.
I answered it, my voice calm. Send the entire legal department and the head of HR to the main conference room. Now. And have the buildings security team come up and escort any unauthorized personnel off the premises.
I hung up. The room was silent.
Everyone stared at me, their faces a mixture of confusion and disbelief.
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