Chapter
You just had to remind them who was in charge.7
During the movie’s promotional period, a wave of negative posts about me appeared online.
They claimed I was a tyrant who bullied Best Actor Julian Croft on set.
They accused me of having a scandalous private life, using my family’s power to get whatever I wanted.
The posts included secretly taken photos. One showed me “scolding” Julian, taken from an angle that made it look like I was scre-
aming in his face. Another was a blurry shot of me leaving a high–end club late at night with a man by my side, just enough to spark
speculation.
The comments section was a cesspool of outrage.
“Capitalists are all evil! My heart goes out to Julian!”
“This woman should be blacklisted! She’s disgusting!”
Jisn’t Isn’t that Zoe Caldwell, the one who drove Ethan Vance away? Figures she’s a venomous snake.”
I read the comments without a trace of anger. In fact, I
und it amusing.
Laura was frantic. “Miss Caldwell, should we get PR on this immediately? These posts are spreading like wildfire. It’s bad for you and for the company.”
“No rush,” I said. “First, find out who’s pulling the strings.”
“And the photo from the club? Who’s the man with you?”
“We’ve already checked,” Laura said. “It’s Mr. Harrison from Sterling Corp. You were meeting to discuss a partnership. The photo
was taken as you were leaving.”
“Perfect.”
I told Laura to hold off and do nothing. We would wait.
The online outrage grev
grew, eventually trending nationwide. The hashtag #ZoeCaldwell GetOut was number one. My social media accounts were flooded with vile, abusive messages.
When even my parents called to demand an explanation, I knew it was time.
I started a livestream.
No makeup, wearing a simple sweater, sitting in my home study.
The moment the stream went live, hundreds of thousands of people poured in. The chat was a waterfall of insults.
“Get out!”
“Corporate parasite!”
“Apologize to our Julian!”
Lignored it all and began to speak.
“Hello, everyone. I’m Zoe Caldwell. I know many of you are here today to curse me out.”
“And you can. But before you do, I’d like to show you a few things.”
I had Laura display a document on the screen.
This is the contract our company signed with Mr. Julian Croft. It clearly outlines his obligations as an actor, including cooperating
Chapter 2
with the production schedule and refraining from unexcused absences or work stoppages.”
“And this,” I said, “is the security footage from the set that day.”
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work over a plate of stir–fried peppers and how I had
calmly and rationally “communicated” with him.
The stream of hateful comments slowed to a trickle.
“Next, this photo.”
I brought up the blurry picture from the club.
“It’s a bit fuzzy, I know. But don’t worry, I have the high–definition version.”
I played another security video. It showed me and a middle–aged man exiting the club, shaking hands professionally, and then gett ing into our separate cars. We were never within three feet of each other.
This is Mr. Harrison, a business partner. We were discussing an investment in renewable energy. And this is the contract we sign- ed that night.”
I displayed another document.
“Finally,” I said, looking directly into the camera with a small smile, “I know a lot of you were paid to attack me online. That’s fine.
Everyone has to make a living.”
“I did a little digging. The main accounts that started this smear campaign, and the most aggressive troll farms, all happen to belong to the same parent company.”
I put the company’s name and a photo of its CEO on the screen.
“The company is called ‘Digital Vanguard.‘ The CEO is a man named Rick Miller. And the person who paid them for this little campa-
ign was…”
I paused for dramatic effect, then displayed one last photo.
It was Ethan Vance, meeting with Rick Miller in a coffee shop.
The livestream exploded.
In an instant, the chat flipped from attacking me to attacking Ethan and the trolls.
“Holy crap! It was that scumbag Ethan behind it all!”
“The truth is out! I’m so sorry, Miss Caldwell!”
“These troll accounts are disgusting! They’ll say anything for money!”
I watched the scrolling comments with satisfaction.
“Everyone,” I said, my voice steady, “the internet is not a lawless space. I have retained the best legal team in the country, and just
moments ago, we submitted all evidence of defamation and slander to the courts.”
“Every single person who participated in this harassment campaign, including the keyboard warriors who left the filthiest commen- ts, will soon be receiving a letter from my lawyers.”
“I don’t want your apologies. I don’t want your money.”
“I just want you to face the legal consequences for your actions.”
“Oh, and one more thing,” I added as a final thought. “That company, ‘Digital Vanguard,‘ and the social media platform they operate
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- on. I find their management practices to .. lacking. They seem to specialize in producing digital garbage.”
“So, a few hours ago, I bought them.”
“Starting tomorrow, the platform will be implementing a real–name verification system. To all the keyboard warriors out there: think
twice before you type.”
I ended the livestream.
The world went quiet.
It turns out, when you’re rich enough, you really can do whatever you want.
Don’t like it?
Fine. I’ll just buy your keyboard.
