“Jeez … you couldn’t find an easier place to meet?” Amber snarled at her, trying to catch her breath from all the steps she took.
“I don’t want to risk people recognizing you … the last place you chose wasn’t exactly my taste either.”
“Still … fifth floor? Couldn’t we just meet in your car?”
“There’s a lot of homeless down there, not taking any chances … you have the tape?” she cut to the chase.
Amber took something out of her bag.
Charlie signaled to Jeremy to move closer to get a better visual and audio. She had maximized her zoom feature, just a few meters closer, she’ll have a clear view of everything.
“Is that everything? Including the recording of our last conversation?” Maxine snatched the tape from her hand.
Amber took a deep breath, “I’d like to have it as insurance, in case you’re going to throw me under the bus for all those rotten things you did that involved me … unwillingly, I might add.”
Maxine scoffed, “I told you … everything … or the deal is off.”
“You have that tape … you can milk him for every last drop of dignity he has in him to get your money … or whatever it is you’re getting out of all this … you don’t need me anymore.”
“See … that’s where you’re wrong, Amber, … I never needed you, you needed me … to get your good looks out there so people will notice it, adore it, spend money for it … the clock is ticking on you, there are thousands of pretty girls out there that can take your place any time of the day … they all want what you wanted, and I can give it to them … and all you’ll ever be is just another pretty face forgotten in time … and they will still look for me to help them get what they want.”
“That’s what it is for you? Getting back on what you never had? A pretty face? No one ever made it easy for you? Even if you spread your legs? ’cause you’re hard to look at?” Amber laughed.
Maxine grabbed her by the neck and squeezed, “You little bitch! I don’t spread my legs for money … I worked hard to get to where I am now so you and your pretty little head can spread your legs and get me my money, that’s what you get if you have a good brain instead of just a pretty head.”
Amber pushed her hard, “You’re choking me, you bitch!”
“Give me the tape!” Maxine grabbed her wrist. “You’re not getting out of here until you give me the other tape!” Maxine yanked Amber’s bag from her, rummaged through it to find the tape. “Let me remind you who you are … you’re nothing but a stupid little girl who was lucky enough to date my nephew and thought you were going to get everything easy because you were pretty,” she found the tape and took it out of the bag. “Without me, you’re nothing … nothing! The moment I saw you came with Brad, I knew you were just a social climber looking for an easy way out … now that you’ve got it all, you think you can do it alone? Go ahead and try … as far as I’m concerned, your career is dead, you might want to consider doing porn … while you still can … as of today, you’re nothing but a has been, Amber,” she threw the bad on the floor and walked off.
Not only what she said was hurtful, but it was probably true. Amber believed it. The reason why she held on to the life she’d grown to despise was the belief that what Maxine had said was true. She will lose everything without Maxine. The hate and anger that built up through the years pushed her to the brink of insanity.
Amber jumped over at Maxine and pulled her hair as hard as she could. If she was going to lose everything after all she’d been through, she might as well take it out on her first. She tried to take back the tapes from Maxine. She made the wrong decisions over and over again but she might still have the chance to redeem herself with this last one.
What’s the use of sacrificing someone else’s life if she was going to lose it all? It was finally clear to her, Brad was right once again, he was trying to get her out of this mess but she dismissed him. If she could take back the tapes, at least she could spare someone else from the nightmare she had gone through.
Maxine fought back. She was strong enough to take hold of the situation when she threw the tapes on the floor and pushed Amber away.
Charlie and Jeremy watched in horror as the two women pulled each other’s hairs and legs on the dusty cement floor stretching out to reach for the tapes. All the while, Charlie’s camera kept rolling.
Maxine managed to reach for the tapes before Amber could. She stood up, Amber jumped on her back again, clanging to her like an angry monkey. She squeezed Maxine’s face with her hands until the silver haired woman screamed in pain and wobbled around and lost her direction. They were too close to the edge of the building but were too upset to care.
Maxine used all her strength to shake Amber off her back, she pulled both her hands off her face and swung her away so hard that she fell away. She fell away over the edge of the building, her scream was sharp and horrific as she fell all the way to the ground.
Charlie gasped in terror, Jeremy covered her mouth with his hand. The night was quiet again, they couldn’t afford to make any sound.
Maxine’s mouth gaped open as she watched Amber fall to her death. She looked over the ledge and saw her motionless on the ground. “Fuck!” her voice echoed. She was catching her breath, gathered herself, she looked around for the tapes and put them in her jacket pockets. She paced back and forth for a minute, weighed on what to do next.
“Fuck!” she covered her mouth, she put Amber’s stuff that was scattered on the floor back to her bag, then she left it by the ledge. She ran down the stairs as fast as she could. Charlie and Jeremy kept listening to her footsteps and the sound of her car sprinted out of the building into the night.
“Oh my God! Oh my God!” Charlie was hyperventilating. They sat back against the wall and tried to process what they’ve just witnessed. “What do we do? Should we call the police?”
Jeremy was as lost as she was. “If we call the police, we’ll be accusing Maxine Roberts of murder … do you think we can handle that?”
They were breathing fast, it felt unreal. “She’s dead … Amber Stewart is dead …” Charlie said to herself as if to make sure it was all real.