Page 255 of If You Give an Artist a Killer Muse

I miss Rurik.

The other day, Nat came over to hang out. I thought we would stuff our faces with ice cream and eat greasy box pizza. So imagine my surprise when she came barging in through the door, demanding me to turn on the television and watch the news.

I hate the news.

But I watched it anyway because Nat kept pushing.

As soon as I turned on the TV, Philip Greene’s ugly ass face appeared on the screen.

Is it weird that I wanted to punch the TV when it filled up with his face?

Anyway, I sat on the couch beside Nat and watched the whole fucking thing.

The breaking news was about a scandal regarding Philip Greene and about the leak of videos of him being involved with kidnapping women and sex trafficking them.

After watching that, I knew I needed more. So, I quickly went to my phone and typed in Philip Greene in the search engine.

I was immediately given the results of his so-called scandal. Full video clips of security footage showing him being inappropriate with staff and people coming forward to smear his public image.

In other words, I may not have killed him, but his actions killed his image.

There was a gossip article that also mentioned Rurik's kidnapping. The weirdest part?

They posted a recording of Rurik and Philip having what appears to be a private conversation.

In the video, they were sitting outside on a picnic table behind what appears to be Philip’s house. They both had drinks in their hand, but Philip’s glass looked halfway full, while Rurik’s looked barely empty. The camera was at a weird angle, as if it were hidden away.

"Why did Marcus get you involved?" Rurik asked in the video.

"I was the one who sought him out,” Philip sighed, though his words were slightly slurred. “She wasn't worthy of you, and I had to get rid of her."

"They tried to kill her," Rurik said, looking pissed.

Philip shrugged, "Well, I told them to do whatever they can."

Rurik's face flushed red. "Including threatening me?"

"I'm sure they wouldn't have harmed you since I paid them off."

The video cut off there, but the article continued, describing how the senator threatened his own stepson’s life and the life of an unidentified girl.

I found that amusing—not like, haha, amusing, but like… It’s so interesting that I’m this unidentified girl.

There was more shit reported about Philip Greene.

All of this is from a reliable source, they said.

Interesting.

What I found interesting were those clips of security cameras and the information about his involvement with trafficking and whatever.

I sent all those to Rurik.

I’m not saying he’s the reliable source, exactly. But come on. It’s just… interesting.

If Rurik was the “reliable source,” he must have paid them off to keep my name out of it, or his previous insistence on keeping us out of the public eye worked in our favor since we were rarely seen together in the first place.

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