Meanwhile, Jerome Laster was feeling pretty giddy. He had finally photoshopped a photo of Alex and Madison together. He was going to use it to destroy them both.
When Madison had previously helped that good–for–nothing Alex and humiliated Jerome, the latter had sworn that he was going to make the both of them pay.
Finally, that day had arrived.
With his eyes filled with smugness and viciousness, Jerome muttered to himself, “B***h! I’m going to drag your reputation through the gutter! This is what you get for crossing me!” Then, he promptly sent out the photo.
When Alex arrived at the office, Ginny had already made sure that his office was spick and span.
“Mr. Jefferson,” greeted Ginny respectfully.
Alex gave her a slight nod and sat in his chair. He gave Jack a call and asked him to his office.
He hadn’t been keeping tabs on most of the happenings around the company lately. He wanted to check in about it with Jack, especially regarding the ongoing projects.
After he hung up the phone, he took out a cigarette and lit it. Soon, Jack arrived.
“Mr. Jefferson.”
“Sit,” Alex ordered as he pointed to the chairs.
After Jack took a seat next to him, Alex leaned back into his seat and asked, “How is the project coming. along?”
He was someone who didn’t like to beat around the bush.
“It’s going okay. We’ve released a few free apps and held a lot of events with freebies and gifts. The outcome has been pretty great. But our three major competitors have noticed our success and are seemingly trying to recreate it themselves,” reported Jack.
“Hmm… As long as we continue to persist in our ‘spending‘ tactic, there’s no way the other three companies can surpass us. We were the ones who grabbed the opportunity first. We’re willing to spend a fortune on this so our users can really reap the benefits, so we’re at an advantage. The other three will need be daring enough to dump in as much money as us, or they won’t be able to remain competitive,” Alex analyzed before he took another puff from his cigarette.
“You’re right. Plus, we have the complete infrastructure. If the other three want to go down the same path as us, then they’ll undoubtedly need to invest twice as much.” Jack nodded.
He took a sip of his tea before continuing, “Oh, right. I have a suggestion, Mr. Jefferson. I think we should expand our copyright/library. The reason our company has been so successful is because we’ve stored a large number of quality copyrights.”
“I recently heard that Q.Dee is experiencing some inner strife, so it’s the perfect opportunity for us to buy them out/Once we acquire them, we’ll have the absolute upper hand in terms of copyright reserves. This is a strategic investment, and one that we should definitely do,” Jack petitioned.
Alex nodded in response. He knew of this Q.Dee. They were a truly mobile copyright library, and the other three companies all had their sights set on it.
“Yes, that’s a good plan. Go ahead and act fast. Use the funding from before. If it’s not enough, call for a board meeting,” Alex instructed.
“Okay.” As Jack was about to leave, the manager of the Public Relations Department ran into the office.
The
Chapter 144
Alex frowned at the frantic–looking woman. “What’s going on?”
“Mr. Jefferson! We’ve got a problem. Someone’s spreading rumors about you and Madison Zucker online. Many media sites have picked up on it, and it’s gone viral!” Linda Zorn cried as she shoved her phone towards Alex.
Alex reached for the phone. On its screen was a photo of him and Madison Zucker holding hands. It was titled ‘Superstar Madison Zucker And Her Mysterious Lover.’
Alex frowned deeply, a flash of anger crossing his eyes.
Whoever started this rumor is obviously trying to destroy Madison!
Madison’s new TV series was going to premiere in a few days. Being caught up in such a scandal at such a point in time would greatly affect her popularity. That would, in turn, affect the viewership ratings for her new series.
Jack’s forehead was also creased in a frown when he caught sight of the photo.
It was obviously doctored, but no one would care about that. Many would assume that everything on the news was real.
“Did a competitor do this?” asked Jack grimly.
Alex shook his head. “I’m not sure. But whoever it is, we need to dig them out!” He seethed as his eye’s flashed with anger. He was more concerned for Madison rather than for himself.
She was one of the biggest stars under their agency, and her huge fanbase guaranteed her success in everything she did. If she really did become ruined, that would undeniably be a major loss to the company.
“Leave this to me. I’ll find out who’s behind this within three days,” said Jack resolutely.
“Alright. Get to it.”
Jack stood up and turned to Linda. “Use all our resources to remove these stories from the internet. We need to minimize the damage.”
“Yes, Sir,” answered Linda before both she and Jack stepped out of Alex’s office.
Alex then placed a call to his secretary, Ginny. “Get Madison Zucker to come to my office right now. I don’t care what she’s in the middle of. I want her here ASAP.”
The biggest victim of all of this was Madison. Her whole career might very well blow up in smoke because of
Alex wanted to see her to offer her some consolation and provide her with some assurances.
Meanwhile, Madison had already seen the photo of her and Alex too. All the comments under the photo, along with her fans‘ grilling, were driving her up the wall.
Her manager, Felicia, and her team were busy trying to clarify that it was all but fake news.
However, most of the public believed the news. Hardly anyone noticed that the photo was photoshopped. That was why the team was having a difficult time clearing Madison’s name.
Most importantly, those that believed the rumor were being especially vocal. They were easily swayed by everyone else’s judgement.
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