Blackmail
Leanne Collins looked down at her teacup, once in a while she was staring outside at the sky from the clear-glass window in her empty-looked.
She got a lot on her mind, but the first thought that was constantly in her mind was how could she got away from the torturing life that she’s been living for the past five years.
She was looking around inside the not-so-trending coffee shop from her seat, but her mind was not really there. Leanne was in a small town called Dermont city, a city that quite far from where she actually lives.
She was waiting for her blackmail victim, a successful married guy in his late thirties. Of course, she was only a messenger, a pawn, a puppet holds by its puppeteer who’s own her. She would never have the heart to destroy anyone’s life, but she had to do it for the last five years because she didn’t have any other choice.
This wicked role had been eating her inside, making her life miserable and furthermore because she still couldn’t find a way to free herself from it.
The door’s bell was ringing once it got opened by a man whose frustration was showing on his face. The man was holding a big size gym bag in his hand.
He’s the guy that Leanne’s been waiting for, and he quickly recognized her. He came over to her table and took the seat across to her while putting the gym bag on the table.
“I’m sure you have put the right amount inside?” asked Leanne while doing a quick check on the stacking money inside. Five years of that kind of ‘job’ makes her good in covering her emotions on the outside—even though the opposite thing happened on the inside.
“Of course. I’m perfectly aware of the fact that I won’t be safe if the money was short even only by a dime! You’ve made it pretty clear too!” The guy’s look was very desperate at the moment, he was worry that his mistakes would ruin his family and career –since he’s trying to run for the mayor of the city too. Everybody in Dermont town knew Ty Bronson.
“How can I be sure that there will be no more extortion on me? And all the evidence had been wiped out?” he said with his fist on the table.
Leanne took the SD card from her cosmetic bag and she dropped that memory card underwater, inside her tea—making sure her fingerprints won’t be found there too.
“That’s the only evidence... You can have it. My suggestion? You better let this go—as if it never happen.” Said Leanne briefly. She stood up, taking the money, and about to leave the place.
Ty grabbed her arm, not satisfied with the possibility that he might get lied to. “You’ll not get away from this. Mark my words!”
“You’re the one who should listen! I’ve been doing this a long time—too long to be able to remind you—that you DON’T play games with these kinds of people! I’m not the one who put you in this position. You did that on your own!” Leanne burst out, feeling mad for a while. “Next time...? Better think again before you decided to cheat on your wife! Or not. It’s your call.” Said Leanne while giving him a clue with her head, so that Ty knew where to look outside, and he knew that Leanne was not alone.
Any of his actions that delaying or harming Leanne, could make the exchange operation in jeopardy. Not to mention his own career could go down if people starting to recognize him. But he refused to take another extortion from his blackmailer.
“I’m not going to give you the money... IF you can’t assure me that memory card is gonna be the last evidence, ever!” He said.
“Did you even hear anything that I said?! You are NOT our first victim okay? When I said; let this go, you should LET this GO! If you lay low after you pay, they won’t bother you again... But if you make a scene... Well, don't say I didn't warn you,” Leanne said, taking her hand off him.
Deep down, Leanne started to feel a little bit panicking. She couldn’t fail the job there were too much innocent people at stake. “Where do you think they could get your pictures the first time, huh? They're everywhere. They can be anybody you expect the least. I’m sure they even know where you live, and everything about your family. Do you want to fight against them?! Go ahead. I can let you talk with them, right now.”
When Leanne was about to give her ‘bodyguards’ the code, Ty was finally giving up.
“Just lay low, and try not to cheat on your wife again!” said Leanne before leaving Ty at once. She walked out of the coffee shop, using her sunglasses, and walk toward her ‘bodyguards’ whose duty was to drive her back to their boss too.
Maybe, Ty would think that she was someone hypocritical since she worked as the blackmailer for a bad guy, and yet she dared to suggest him to go back at the path of truth. Not that she ever cared about anything they think about her—or the fact that even if she cared, she couldn’t change a single thing anyway. She had to keep going in her wicked role.
Mostly, she was able to keep going under the pressure of her boss was because all of the victims were the ones who put themselves in trouble by choosing bad decisions in the first place. The bottom line, they were all not good people too.
Not to mention, she happened to know that money was never a problem for all of the victims. Most of them easily paid the demands and comply before moving on.
There were a few victims within the years who fought but usually it turned out bad for them. And by the word bad, means they got silenced and not heard anymore, hence, they got killed. They got wiped out from the world as if no one ever knew them. Or if someone did know them, they would have to accept that Leanne's boss always got away from the evil accusations upon him. Her boss got a lot of people working with him. So, it was better—or at least everything went better for all the victims who comply.
But it was different with her and what she’d been dealing with. FIVE YEARS. No one ever knew about the situation she’s in— or what she’d been through to be free from her boss.
Leanne had done everything she could and she'd been accepting the consequences from all her getaway attempts too. Every failed attempt made her learn the hard way until she realised that she just had to be her boss' puppet doing every wicked thing he wanted. She couldn’t keep trying to run away, because even if she was her boss’ right hand, her luck and her chances could be run out too, someday.
