Each question hangs heavily in the air, amplifying the scrutiny directed at her.
Gloria’s smile falters, and she clears her throat, her discomfort palpable. “It’s not easy to recall exact specifics…”
Jerry leans forward, his tone sharp and probing. “Come on, Gloria, you’ve made some serious accusations here. Surely youcan remember the incidents Daisy and Ace are talking about. Or are you suggesting that they’re both fabricating their stories?”
Gloria stammers, her confidence visibly crumbling. “It’s just… I recall some incidents where Ace was… aggressive.”
Jerry doesn’t relent, pressing harder. “And yet, you can’t provide specifics or any evidence to support these claims? We’re talking about some serious allegations here.”
The studio lights seem to intensify, making Gloria’s discomfort more obvious as her face pales. She starts fidgeting, glancing away like she’s searching for an escape. The silence stretches, her growing hesitation speaking volumes, highlighting the fragility of her accusations. Each passing second adds weight to the tension in the room, and I can feel the momentum slowly shifting in our favor.
Jerry shifts his focus, his tone sharp and probing. "There's one more crucial detail in these allegations—take a look."
He turns back to the screen, and I follow his gaze, to see my mother’s face reappear on the monitor. “There was an incident when he was seventeen. His stepfather, Larry,” she glances at the scumbag sitting next to her, “tried to protect me, and Ace didn’t take it well. There was this moment when he grabbed me and wouldn’t let go. That was the day I genuinely feared for my life, truly believing it could be my last. A boy should never lay a hand on his mother like that. I just can’t understand where I went wrong, raising a son with so much hatred in his heart. If Larry hadn’t been there, I don’t know what I would’ve done.”
The clip ends abruptly, leaving a heavy silence in its wake. Jerry faces my mother, his tone shifting. “Gloria, you claimed that Ace’s stepfather—”
“He was never my stepfather,” I interject firmly, cutting Jerry off.
Jerry glances at me briefly, then redirects his attention back to my mother. “Gloria, you’ve stated that Ace was violenttowards your boyfriend. You even made that claim right here on this very show. Can you explain that?”
The man beside Gloria looks uneasy, shifting in his seat as if he’s trying to shrink away from the scrutiny. “I—well, there were incidents…”
Jerry presses on, shifting his questions to the dickhead beside my mother. “Incidents? Can you be more specific? What exactly happened? And where’s the evidence to back up these claims?”
The man’s face reddens as he glances nervously at Gloria, who seems to be struggling to hold it together under the mounting pressure. The tension in the room thickens, the truth becoming harder and harder to mask.
The old biker wannabe shifts again, his hands fidgeting in his lap. “I—he was always aggressive. I was attacked by Ace, and it was unprovoked.”
Jerry’s attention snaps back to me, his gaze intense and expectant. “Ace, what’s your take on these claims?”
“That’s not true at all. He came at me first. I was just seventeen, and he had me pinned to the wall with his hands around my throat. Xander Williams was there-”
“Xander Williams, the lead singer of Broken Oasis, was there?” Jerry cuts in, his curiosity piqued.
“Yes, he was there. He can confirm I was not the aggressor.” I feel the fire in my chest blaze hotter as I recount the truth, knowing it’s my only weapon against the lies being spun.
As I sit here, facing my mother, I think about all the years of fear and intimidation my mother instilled in me now seems misplaced. I’ve been haunted by this woman who, in reality, is nothing more than a sad, desperate figure clinging to whatever she can get. The anger and hurt I’ve carried for so long feels almost laughable against her pitiful attempts to cash in on my fame.
“Will Xander Williams confirm the truth of this story?” Jerry asks, bringing me out of my thoughts.
“Yeah,” I reply firmly. “He was there. He knows exactly what happened.” I can feel the weight of the moment, each word cutting through years of silence and fear. I won’t let her spin this narrative anymore. I won’t let her control my life.
The fucker beside my mother looks increasingly uncomfortable, his earlier smugness now replaced by unease. My mother drops her gaze, her facade cracking. The shaky foundation of her accusations is now crumbling under Jerry’s relentless questioning.
Jerry turns his attention to Daisy. “And was this man one of the men who tried to get into your room, Daisy?”
“No,” Daisy shakes her head firmly. “I’ve never met him. I didn’t see him until he started spreading lies about my brother.”
Jerry’s expression grows skeptical as he looks at Gloria. “It seems there’s a significant discrepancy between the claims being made and the evidence provided. Gloria, are you sure you have a solid basis for these accusations?”
Gloria shifts uncomfortably in her seat, her earlier confidence now wavering under Jerry's intense scrutiny. “I... I just know what I’ve seen over the years,” she stammers, her voice losing its edge. “Ace has always had a temper. He’s always been violent.”
“Violent?” Jerry interjects, his tone sharper. “You keep using that word without providing any proof. You’ve made serious claims about your son, but when pressed for specifics, you falter. Are you suggesting that Ace is lying, or are you simply using his fame to push your own agenda?”
The spotlight on her grows harsher, exposing the cracks in her story. She fidgets, avoiding Jerry’s sharp gaze, and I can see the wheels turning in her mind as she scrambles to craft a response that might save her claims.
“I… I don’t know. It’s just—” Gloria’s voice trails off. She can’t even muster the strength to defend herself against the truth, and I feel a surge of vindication as those watching witness her unraveling.