Raw Vengeance (The Rich Fordham Series) Read Online Free
Author: Josh Handrich
happen. He wanted to kill the mayor, but this looks like a classic case of ‘death by cop.’ This was a message.”
She nodded without saying anything.
“ You know what the damnedest thing is?” Rich continued. “Mayor Cogan isn’t even in town.”
CHAPTER 3
A day after the police shooting, Rich found himself struggling to get back into his normal routine. Witnessing the officer’s death had given him a serious gut check; it was the first time he’d seen someone die. He knew if he was to reach his goal of becoming an international correspondent, he’d need to develop a thicker skin. Desensitizing oneself to death wasn’t something that happened overnight. That evening he worked out an extra hour, then stayed up until three in the morning polishing off a fifth of whisky in an attempt to get the images out of his head.
Rich’s medium-sized cubicle, located near the middle of an expansive room on WSNO’s third floor, felt smaller and more confined, although nothing had changed. Animated conversations from across the room and other extraneous stimuli dulled his senses. Being hung over didn’t help, either. He sighed heavily and wished he could transplant himself into the picture of Cancun on his computer. Today blows.
He went to take a sip of coffee and realized his Styrofoam cup was empty. Rich chucked the handwritten message from his producer, Sarah Kinney, condemning his war-style reporting into the wastebasket. Although the network was obsessed with high ratings—and the ratings during his stunt quadrupled—the lawyers and sponsors controlled the network’s content. They didn’t want to pay for medical bills or lawsuits. The producers preferred watered-down material, because it wasn’t good business to scare viewers. For every murder story, they needed a human-interest segment to give people a warm, fuzzy feeling.
To take on the kind of gritty stories Rich wanted to cover wasn’t in WSNO’s best interest. After only a few months of working there, he recognized this invisible barrier. In his opinion, the network had potential, but lacked imagination and was stuck in its ways. If Rich were to progress as a journalist, he’d need to prove himself at the local level first.
A change of scenery and a recharge were in order. He stood up, glanced around, and made his way to the break area to get another cup of coffee. When he was almost to the coffee maker, Wayne Vale, WSNO’s senior investigative reporter and management golden boy, beat him to the pot. At forty-eight and single, he was the main obstacle between Rich’s ability to prove himself and his dream job at a more prestigious network. Wayne always took the meatier stories and left the scraps for Rich and the newbie reporters to fight over.
“ Rich,” he said coyly, with his southern accent, “great coverage on the death-by-cop story. Very compelling. That was epic reporting, truly epic.” Wayne’s condescending tone made Rich want to tear the other man’s guts out, but instead he smiled. Rich knew better than to react to what he had just heard. Competition among reporters at the local network television level was fierce, and Wayne sensed that Rich was a force to be reckoned with. To his credit, Wayne was a brilliant reporter; after twenty-plus years at WSNO, he was accomplished at everything from research and interviewing a subject to anchoring and writing.
“ Thanks, Wayne. I appreciate that. Coming from you, that means a lot to me. How’s life with Ashley? Is she treating you okay?” he asked straight-faced. Wayne had carried on an affair with the CEO’s wife, Ashley. She had spread a rumor that Wayne was impotent and lousy in bed after he broke up with her.
Wayne glared at Rich and mentally strangled him. He was used to people kissing his ass and bending over backward for him. This little ass needed to be put in his place. “You know, asking questions like that and having an attitude is going to get you nowhere except out
She nodded without saying anything.
“ You know what the damnedest thing is?” Rich continued. “Mayor Cogan isn’t even in town.”
CHAPTER 3
A day after the police shooting, Rich found himself struggling to get back into his normal routine. Witnessing the officer’s death had given him a serious gut check; it was the first time he’d seen someone die. He knew if he was to reach his goal of becoming an international correspondent, he’d need to develop a thicker skin. Desensitizing oneself to death wasn’t something that happened overnight. That evening he worked out an extra hour, then stayed up until three in the morning polishing off a fifth of whisky in an attempt to get the images out of his head.
Rich’s medium-sized cubicle, located near the middle of an expansive room on WSNO’s third floor, felt smaller and more confined, although nothing had changed. Animated conversations from across the room and other extraneous stimuli dulled his senses. Being hung over didn’t help, either. He sighed heavily and wished he could transplant himself into the picture of Cancun on his computer. Today blows.
He went to take a sip of coffee and realized his Styrofoam cup was empty. Rich chucked the handwritten message from his producer, Sarah Kinney, condemning his war-style reporting into the wastebasket. Although the network was obsessed with high ratings—and the ratings during his stunt quadrupled—the lawyers and sponsors controlled the network’s content. They didn’t want to pay for medical bills or lawsuits. The producers preferred watered-down material, because it wasn’t good business to scare viewers. For every murder story, they needed a human-interest segment to give people a warm, fuzzy feeling.
To take on the kind of gritty stories Rich wanted to cover wasn’t in WSNO’s best interest. After only a few months of working there, he recognized this invisible barrier. In his opinion, the network had potential, but lacked imagination and was stuck in its ways. If Rich were to progress as a journalist, he’d need to prove himself at the local level first.
A change of scenery and a recharge were in order. He stood up, glanced around, and made his way to the break area to get another cup of coffee. When he was almost to the coffee maker, Wayne Vale, WSNO’s senior investigative reporter and management golden boy, beat him to the pot. At forty-eight and single, he was the main obstacle between Rich’s ability to prove himself and his dream job at a more prestigious network. Wayne always took the meatier stories and left the scraps for Rich and the newbie reporters to fight over.
“ Rich,” he said coyly, with his southern accent, “great coverage on the death-by-cop story. Very compelling. That was epic reporting, truly epic.” Wayne’s condescending tone made Rich want to tear the other man’s guts out, but instead he smiled. Rich knew better than to react to what he had just heard. Competition among reporters at the local network television level was fierce, and Wayne sensed that Rich was a force to be reckoned with. To his credit, Wayne was a brilliant reporter; after twenty-plus years at WSNO, he was accomplished at everything from research and interviewing a subject to anchoring and writing.
“ Thanks, Wayne. I appreciate that. Coming from you, that means a lot to me. How’s life with Ashley? Is she treating you okay?” he asked straight-faced. Wayne had carried on an affair with the CEO’s wife, Ashley. She had spread a rumor that Wayne was impotent and lousy in bed after he broke up with her.
Wayne glared at Rich and mentally strangled him. He was used to people kissing his ass and bending over backward for him. This little ass needed to be put in his place. “You know, asking questions like that and having an attitude is going to get you nowhere except out
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