Chapter 32 No Way Back
Harper's Pov,
Mike called back twenty minutes later.
"I read through the sample files you sent." His voice was tight with barely contained excitement. "Harper, this is bigger than I thought. Richard Moss hasn't just been running a smear campaign… He's been actively coordinating with multiple parties to manufacture criminal charges against you."
I put him on speaker so Maya could hear. "What did you find?"
"There's an email thread between Richard and someone at the DA's office. They're discussing your case three weeks before charges were even filed. Richard's feeding them information about your 'history of instability' and suggesting they escalate from civil to criminal."
"To be exact, who at the DA's office?" I asked.
"Assistant DA named Jennifer Walsh. She handles assault cases." Mike paused.
"And according to her LinkedIn, she went to law school with Richard's wife."
Maya and I looked at each other.
"That's a conflict of interest," Maya said.
"That's potential corruption," Mike corrected.
"And it gets better. There are also emails between Richard and David Morrison at the Titans. They've been planning how to force you out of Crew's life for weeks. Morrison even asks Richard for advice on how to frame the contract termination so it doesn't look like retaliation."
"Can you prove Richard initiated contact?" I asked.
"He initiated everything. Every single thread starts with him reaching out." Mike's voice got sharper.
"Harper, this guy has been running a coordinated campaign across multiple institutions to destroy you. And he's been stupid enough to document all of it in writing."
"So what happens now?"
"Now I write the story. But I need you to go on record. I need quotes from you — explaining what's been happening, how it's affected your life, what Richard's been doing."
Mike exhaled, then continued…
"Without your voice, this is just leaked emails. But with your voice, it's a corruption story that's going to blow up sports media."
As he said that, my stomach twisted.
Going on record meant putting my name out there even more than it already was. It meant making myself a bigger target.
But staying silent meant letting Richard win.
"I'll do it," I said. "When do you need me?"
"Tomorrow morning. I'll come to you. This story runs in 48 hours whether the Titans like it or not."
He hung up.
Maya was already typing furiously on her laptop. "I need to get ahead of this. The Titans are going to lose their minds when this story drops and I work for them. I need to figure out how to position myself so I don't get fired in the fallout."
"You could get fired?"
"Probably. But it'll be worth it to watch Morrison try to explain why he was taking advice from Joel's agent on how to fire Crew." She looked up at me.
"Harper, you understand what you just started, right? This isn't just about exposing Richard. This is about burning down everyone who helped him."
"Good. They deserve it."
"Yeah, they do. But when this story breaks, you're going to become the center of an even bigger media storm. Richard's going to retaliate. The Titans are going to try to discredit you. Brianna's lawyers are going to use this as evidence that you're vindictive and unstable."
"Let them. At least this time I'm fighting back instead of just taking it."
Maya smiled. "Now that's the Harper I know."
My phone rang. It was Monica.
I answered. "Hey—"
"What the hell did you do?" She sounded furious.
"I just got a call from the DA's office. They're accusing you of witness intimidation because Emma Rodriguez contacted them saying she's been pressured to recant her testimony."
"What? I didn't pressure Emma to do anything."
"Well someone did. And now the prosecution is filing a motion to bar you from contacting any witnesses in your case. Which means they're going to argue at trial that you're attempting to obstruct justice."
I closed my eyes. "Richard. He must have gotten to Emma. Made her call the DA and claim I threatened her."
"Can you prove that?"
"Not yet. But Mike's story is going to show Richard's been coordinating with the DA's office. That should be enough to raise questions about why they're taking his word over mine."
Monica was quiet for a long moment.
"Did you give those emails to a journalist?"
"Umm… ye-yes?" My voice came out thin, and I could hear the edge of panic under it.
"Harper, we talked about this. That evidence is inadmissible in court. All you've done is given the prosecution ammunition to argue that you're trying to manipulate public opinion because you know you can't win on the merits."
"Or I've exposed a conspiracy that proves I'm being railroaded." I said it fast, breathless and dangerously sure.
"That's not how judges see it.” She shot back.
“Judges hate media circuses. They hate defendants who try cases in the press instead of in court." Her voice got harder.
"You just made my job exponentially more difficult."
"I'm sorry, but I can't just sit here and wait for Richard to destroy me piece by piece. I had to do something."
"You should have consulted me first."
"Would you have told me not to do it?"
"Yes."
"Then I'm glad I didn't ask." I took a breath. "Monica, I know this complicates things. But Richard's been working with the DA's office to build a case against me. That's corruption. That HAS to matter."
"It would matter if we could prove it in court. But we can't use those emails as evidence. Which means all you've done is alert Richard that you have them. Now he's going to destroy any other evidence that might corroborate your claims and he's going to prepare for the media blowback." She paused.
"You just gave away your best weapon before you knew how to use it properly."
The words hit like a punch.
"So what do I do now?"
"Now? You prepare for Richard to come after you harder than ever. He's going to try to paint you as a liar who's manufacturing evidence. He's going to claim those emails are fake or taken out of context. And the DA's office is going to do everything they can to discredit you before this story goes public." Monica's voice softened slightly.
"Harper, I understand why you did this. But you just declared war on people who have more resources and more power than you do. And I'm not sure you're ready for what's coming next."
"I don't have a choice. If I don't fight back, they win anyway."
"Maybe. But there's a difference between fighting back strategically and fighting back desperately. And what you just did feels a lot more like desperation than strategy."
She hung up.
I sat there staring at my phone, Monica's words echoing in my head.
Had I just made a massive mistake?
"Hey." Maya put her hand on my arm.
"Don't spiral. Monica's job is to be cautious. But sometimes caution is just another word for letting bad people get away with bad things."
"What if she's right? What if I just made everything worse?"
"Then we deal with it. But at least you're doing something instead of just waiting to get destroyed." She pulled up Mike's contact info.
"And if Richard wants to retaliate, let him. Because now his retaliation is going to be documented in a major media investigation. Every move he makes from here on out is evidence."
"So what do we do now?"
"Now we prepare for the interview with Mike tomorrow. We figure out exactly what you're going to say and how you're going to say it. Because this is your one shot to control the narrative before Richard spins it his way."
We worked until two in the morning, going over every detail of what happened. Every email, threat and every move Richard had made to destroy me.
By the time we finished, I had pages of notes and talking points and a story that was airtight.
Now I just had to hope people would believe it.