Sidney wheeled her small case into the elevator a few minutes later.
“He’s a serial misogynist and a complete asshole,” Leslie Martin said as soon as the doors closed. She was producingThe Girl of Sugar Beachwith Sidney.
“I’ve got too much to do to worry about Luke Barrington,” Sidney said, pressing the button for the lobby too many times and much harder than necessary. “But goddamn, that man can smell blood in the water. We should call him ‘the Shark’ instead of ‘the Bear.’ He knows we were expecting higher numbers for the debut, even though Graham swore that only the production heads knew the projections.”
“One-point-two is great for a premiere. And we pulled in a decent share of the eighteen-to–twenty-four demo.”
“They wanted two million, as a conservative number. I’m woefully short. And they projected two million so that we could all jump for joy when the numbers came back higher than that.”
“These things build with the story.Making a Murdererhad three times the audience for the final episodes than it had for the early ones. Same thing withSerial.”
“This is prime time, not a subscription service and not a podcast. All that matters are the ratings. They drive advertising. Advertising drives revenue. Revenue pays the bills and keeps the suits in their cushy jobs.” Sidney looked up briefly and watched the elevator numbers decline.An omen?
She blinked away and shook her head.“Christ, Leslie, what if he’s right? Do we even have a story to build on?”
“Of course, we do. We’re going to show inconsistencies. Raise doubt. Offer alternative theories. All of that will build suspense and intrigue. DidMaking a Murdererprove Steven Avery’s innocence? DidSerialprove Adnan Syed’s? It’s not about guilt or innocence. That’s the hook, but the guts will be about Grace Sebold’s story. Who was she? How did this happen? People are still interested in her—we just have to tap into that interest. Forget about the Bear. The network is behind you and heavily promoting it. You’ve got Dante Campbell on your side and ads are running onWake Up America.Previous episodes can be viewed online, so our audience will grow. Don’t wig out on me now. I need this job.”
The elevatorpingedas it reached the ground floor. “You’ve got a job, don’t worry about that.”
The doors opened and they walked into the lobby, where the tinted glass of the façade blunted the morning sunlight. Herds of Monday-morning commuters crisscrossed on the sidewalk outside.
“You know he’s working like a son of bitch just to score massive ratings with his damn White House special so he can bury us,” Sidney said. “Probably cashed in on a bunch of favors to secure those interviews.”
“Why do we care?”
“Because the goddamn Bear is trying to devour us, Leslie. He’s trying to put together a ratings tsunami that wipesThe Girl of Sugar Beachoff the map, so by the end of summer, no one has ever heard of it. Or me. And then he can show everyone on his staff that when they leave to do something on their own, you end up like Sidney Ryan.”
“Well, let’s prove the blowhard wrong then.”
Sidney shook her head. “Have you pulled the old high-school footage of Grace?”
“Yeah. Her parents turned over everything they had. Hours of family videos, so we should be able to pull plenty of cuts from them.”
“Good. Did you manage to find any material on Julian?”
Leslie shook her head. “His parents wouldn’t return my calls, so all we’ve got are stock photos. Yearbook and limited Facebook content from 2007.”
“Get me what you can. We’ll meet back here tonight to cut the draft of the next episode. Seven work for you?”
“Perfect. The suits will be gone by then. I’ll bring the wine.” Leslie tapped Sidney’s Starbucks cup with her own. “Cheers. This thing’s going to be a hit, Sid. Screw Luke Barrington.”
Sidney forced a smile and lifted her coffee, then wheeled her files to the curb to catch a cab.
CHAPTER 16
Monday, June 5, 2017
SHE SLAMMED THE CAB’S DOOR AND WALKED TO THE CORNER RESTAURANTin Midtown. Inside, she spotted a tall, athletic woman tapping on her laptop and knew from photos—and recent television interviews, including one with Dante Campbell—that she was looking at Dr. Livia Cutty, from the prestigious North Carolina Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. Dr. Cutty was finishing a fellowship in Raleigh, and had come to Sidney’s attention, and most of America’s, during a high-profile missing person’s case involving Dr. Cutty’s sister.
Needing forensic help with Grace’s case, Sidney could think of no one better than Livia Cutty. Coming off such a notorious case, Dr. Cutty’s involvement in the documentary could only attract attention. Cutty was still in the spotlight and Sidney, quite simply and selfishly, was hoping to share some of the warmth. It didn’t hurt that Livia Cutty was striking to look at and would play nicely on television. Sidney nearly retched at her last thought. Luke Barrington was rubbing off on her.
She walked over. “Dr. Cutty?”
The doctor looked up and smiled. “Yes. Sidney?”
“Sidney Ryan, yes.”
They shook hands.
