The Whisper Box (27 page)

Grant now reached for the phone that Mac stole from one of the dead men. There was no number on the phone but there was caller identification and redial. He looked at the last four numbers that called this phone. Three of the last four calls were made during what Mac described as the time of his shoot-out in the cabin. They all had a Washington DC area code attached to it. Grant was shaking now. He wanted to hit the redial so bad, but he figured he would wait until the right time to do that.

Grant walked to the pay phone and called his friend at the television station to tell him where he was. They discussed a plan, a time, and directions for where to meet. Grant was about one hour away. He would leave immediately. He told his friend to bring video equipment, audio equipment and plenty of software to go live on the Internet too. WNJZ had plenty of technology to throw around. They were about to make all of the money back that they spent on it and millions more. Grant jumped back in the car and sped off. He was driving frantically for one hour. He found the location that Nash Simmons gave him directions to.

Grant and Nash became friends when they both started working at CNN immediately after their graduation from Villanova University. Grant was a reporter and Nash was his cameraman. The relationship between a cameraman and a reporter can become strong over time. They have to work together like a team. Nash and Grant were the Stockton and Malone of television reporting. Each knew what the other was thinking all the time. Nash told Grant that he always wanted to get into the reporting side of the business. He took this job as a cameraman hoping to work his way up the ladder. After five years, he was convinced it was never going to happen. He interviewed at WNJZ last year for the feature reporter's position. It was a small local station compared to the national powerhouses that had their own station dedicated to news, but it was a start. Grant and Nash remained in touch. When Grant was presumed dead, the only person he called was Nash. He knew he would need Nash's help and he knew he could trust him. He also knew that Nash would jump at the chance to put his face on national television with hopes of landing a job with a monster outlet.

Nash had not arrived at their meeting place yet. Grant was petrified that someone else was listening in through a tapped phone line and killed Nash before he had the chance. He would be ridden with guilt forever. As Grant was grieving for Nash, his white WNJZ van came zipping into the rear parking lot. Nash jumped out of the van while Grant got out of his little yellow CRX.

“Wow! I thought a big CNN reporter drove a nicer car than that! Did your agent make you shave your head?” Nash was always poking fun at Grant.

“Hey buddy, how've ya' been?” Grant forced a smile even though he was mentally and physically exhausted.

“I've been worried about you. A couple days ago I sat in my apartment and got drunk toasting you in heaven for about five hours until I passed out. Then I find out you’re alive, so the hang over was for nothing. Thanks a lot.” Nash's smile was the biggest Grant had ever seen. You could see all of his teeth, his gums and sometimes most of his jaw.

“Sorry to disappoint you, but that's always been your problem. You jump the gun, you don't wait to hear the whole story.” Grant took a fun jab back at his friend.

“OK Mr. Hotshot Reporter, enough of the fun stuff. Give me a briefing on what's going on and let's make this thing happen.” He was ready for business as Grant promised him that he could conduct most of the interview.

Grant gave Nash the whole story. He left nothing out. He told him about his days prior to CNN. He told him everything he knew about Farnsworth's extortion deals with Anson Ripple and Roy Steel of AutoWorld. He explained the similar ways that several people associated with the President were all found dead, out of town, and in their car. He told Nash about the late McFarland Hart and his friend Aaron who was in jail. He left out no detail. Nash was pale as he jotted down his notes. It took Nash an hour just to have a complete understanding of the story he was about to break.

It took them another hour to set up all of the equipment. They had a special speaker that could be attached to Grant's cell phone that he took from Mac for a special on air interview so the viewer could hear both ends of the conversation. Mac told Grant how the phone rang in the basement after the shoot-out. Grant knew that whoever placed that call would be directly involved somehow. They had three cameras with three floodlights. It was growing dark. They hooked up a videocassette recorder and television screen to play video and they hooked up an audio player so they could play the audiotapes.

When everything was hooked up it was about six o'clock in the afternoon. They had to watch the videotapes made by Laura Greene before they ran them on the air. They had to select the best of them to play on their live broadcast. Grant had only heard audiotapes he had not yet seen the video. Grant was anticipating some vulgar content with more than enough evidence to bring down the President that evening. Grant had already heard enough audio. If the video was half as good this case would be unarguable and Aaron would be released from prison within a day or so.

All the tapes were numbered. There were a total of six. The first tape was poor quality. The camera was shaking for the duration. Obviously Miss Greene was nervous. This was her first time taping the President secretly from an air conditioning vent in her office. She obviously had to hold the camera at an odd angle. You could make out a woman removing her slip. When the tape started her dress was already removed. You could hear the President tell her to “keep quiet and just enjoy it.” You could hear the faint moans of a woman that was not totally enjoying the experience and you could hear the heavy breathing of the President himself. The tape ended before they were done.

The second tape was of the President sitting at his desk talking to someone named 'Anderson'. Farnsworth asked repeatedly if the guy he went to college with could be tracked down. Anderson said that he was 'gonna fry in the big house' once he found him. He assured Farnsworth not to worry. Then Farnsworth dropped a bomb. He told Anderson exactly how to threaten the old fraternity brother if he seemed unwilling to cooperate. Farnsworth slammed his fist on his desk and muttered some expletives. He then picked up the phone and called Barry Stienham and told him to ignore anything he heard in the next few days “if he knew what was good for his career.”

The third tape was destroyed. The fourth tape was more sexual encounters; one of them was with the first woman on video number one. She asked the President to “please stop” on seven different occasions while they were having sex. This was a powerful tape but not one that could be shown on television. The second encounter was with the cattle ranchers' wife who turned up dead months later.

The fifth and sixth tapes were both phone calls with Rico from Miami. Farnsworth was explaining to Rico how he would be able to retire by the end of the year if he just finished a few jobs for him. He explained to Rico that the only reason he was involved in such deals was to keep the authorities in Miami quiet. The more favors he did for them, they would return to him tenfold. He mentioned two Miami police Chiefs names and stated that they were “crooked old bastards who were kept quiet with cocaine."

Grant and Nash decided that tape number two was going to lead off the show. They would immediately implicate Barry Stienham. This would help clarify why Grant had been on the run in the first place. They would then discuss all of these allegations, leaving no rock unturned. The both of them were assuming that within thirty seconds, once the word got out about what WNJZ was airing, they would be picked up by every major news station in the world. They were hoping for MSNBC more than anyone. Grant could never go back to CNN and Nash did not want to. MSNBC would be the next media giant after the ensuing crumble of the CNN Empire.

Grant was never concerned with WNJZ and their possible reluctance to air this. Grant knew Nash's boss would air just about anything to make his station famous. He would air his parents’ infidelity if he knew his ratings were going to rule. That is why he held such a lofty position. He was made aware of what was about to happen about an hour ago and he was sitting in the control room back at WNJZ's headquarters ready to go.

At precisely 6:02pm WNJZ interrupted Jeopardy with a blue screen that read: BREAKING STORY ON WNJZ.

They cut to Nash holding a microphone. Grant could not yet be seen.

“This is Nash Simmons reporting live for WNJZ. The last seven days have been odd ones for Americans. We have heard reports about incriminating evidence that a woman named Laura Greene had against President Farnsworth. As we waited by our televisions for Mrs. Greene's testimony we learned that she was now in hiding and that her evidence may have been a false attempt to exact some sort of revenge against President Farnsworth. Miss Greene was made out to be a cheat, a psychopathic liar, and a coward. WNJZ has learned that Mrs. Greene only hid from those who chased her and tried to kill her. She was shot in the head while being chased in New York down Interstate 287. He body was then disposed of. The gentleman driving that car, Mr. McFarland Hart III escaped with his life and Miss Greene's tapes. He then contacted Grant Winchester of CNN, who recently was also reported dead in a plane crash. Our new evidence tells us that Grant's plane crash may not have been such a mistake. It may have been foul play on the part of someone who did not want Mr. Winchester and Mr. Hart to meet. After all, Grant Winchester and a library of incriminating audio and videotapes could be a disastrous combination to someone that was a high-ranking official in this country.

At the same time there was another man named Aaron Gallo that also was contacting Mr. Winchester about some information he received from the First Lady herself the night of her death that led him to believe that she was murdered. He, too, was threatened, shot at, violated, and just recently framed for the murder of a woman who was found dead off of a Charlotte highway. He now sits in a jail cell. He is an innocent man that was breaking laws to survive the bounty hunters that were ordered after him.

These three men, Grant Winchester, Aaron Gallo and McFarland Hart III were all sent on a wild goose chase to form a union and present their information for the good of America. Their information incriminated the President on counts of extortion, rape, murder and other such crimes.

How does one believe such a wild story? How does one believe such a far-fetched tale? The only way to believe it is to bring back the dead, ask the victims what happened. While I can not bring back Mr. Hart, a great American Patriot or Miss Greene another great Patriot of this country, while I can not go to a prison and ask Aaron Gallo what really happened the night Miss Welsh was killed, I can ask my good friend Mr. Grant Winchester.”

The camera swung to a bald Grant Winchester. He gave the camera a good look. He squinted and bit his bottom lip before he spoke. Grant could play the part. He had been running around for days with little sleep, little food, and his life in jeopardy but the second the red light on top of the camera went on he turned into the best damn reporter in the United States. Grant reached for Mac's stolen phone in his pocket. His jacket pocket and his hand were out of sight of the camera. He punched the “redial last number” button and the number to Washington DC dialed. The phone was hooked up to a microphone. The second Grant heard the receiver pick up; he flipped the 'On' switch.

“You better have some good fuckin’ news for me!” screamed old Howard Farnsworth.

“Oh, I have some news all right.” Grant smiled into the camera.

“I see you framed the jackass from Carolina. Good job. Did the little piece of crap from New York...ya' know the McFarland kid...is he dead yet? I know he shot himself.” Farnsworth was obviously very nervous.

Grant was stalling as much as possible to give every major news outlet in the country time to hear about what little WNJZ was doing. He knew it was only a matter of seconds before he was on every television station in the world. “Yeah, everybody is dead or in jail. I can't believe you pulled it off Mr. President. For a second there, I thought everyone was going to find out about how crooked you are.”

“Wait a minute, who the hell is this?” Farnsworth was growing furious and scared.

“Turn your television on you farce.” The anger in Grant's voice was obvious. He was spewing venom.

The President hung up the phone and Grant smiled into the camera and began to report. He and Nash uncovered every audio and videotape they could without breaking any FCC laws. They told the entire story from beginning to end. Grant did not just talk about the last four or five days. He also talked about the related murders of missing people off the side of the road out of town. He talked about the Ripple extortion in great detail as if he knew Anson Ripple himself. They uncovered everything. By the time they were almost done the scene outside the White House was out of control. There were five thousand reporters and cameramen snapping photos of the White House lawn. They were snapping photos of the room where the President’s private second floor office was. They were trying to interview any employees leaving the premises, including groundskeepers, maids, and security guards.

Aaron laid across the metal bench in his holding cell watching the television down the hall. He could just barely see it. He smiled through the blood and the sweat. He watched his buddy Grant take over the show like he had so many times in the past. The Lieutenant turned the television off and exited the room.