Trust No One

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April 8th, 2020

Miami, Florida

Off Camera

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The opulent living room of “The British Bombshell” is a gorgeous, sleek modern design.  It is also clean; almost to perfection with barely a spot and even if one exists, it isn’t noticeable.  The cream colored sofa is soft, comfortable, and plush.  It is situated in front of a large flat screen television mounted on the wall above a fireplace.  The fireplace does seem slightly out of place as it is the only piece in this living room that looks relatively traditional.  It isn’t used often; this is Miami, after all.  Sitting in a comfortable recliner with her feet propped up is none other than “The British Bombshell” Glory Braddock.  Sitting on the arm of the comfortable reclining chair is the remote control and in Braddock’s right is a glass of red wine.  The blonde haired beauty’s stone faced gaze is glaring across at a television set which is tuned into the morning news.  She is transfixed, waiting anxiously for any news, anything at all, about the recent events in her life.

Braddock’s life has been anything but dull lately.  You can tell based on the somewhat nervous gaze she is giving off at this moment.  Very rarely does she let any weakness show through.  She wants to put forth a strong front, as if nothing can bother her.  But The British Bombshell is most certainly troubled.  It was on March 9th after a meeting between her and her arch business and personal rival Mason Van Stanton that her and her family were targeted by gunmen outside of the hotel they were staying in Raleigh, North Carolina.

It could not have been a random attack.  There was nothing random about it, as far as Glory Braddock is concerned.  Her corporate power in the wrestling world is only just beginning to take off.  She gained full ownership of Global Championship Wrestling from the Van Stanton family.  She gained full ownership of the Braddock Wrestling School upon the death of her father, Glenn Braddock.  She successfully merged the two into one entity and now many are beginning to take notice of her.  Those who had once looked upon her as just another professional wrestler are realizing the truth; the truth that she is very powerful inside and outside the ring and can be a very influential force in the sport of wrestling.  And that’s only what the public knows.  There are actions taken by Braddock that the public does not yet know.

Only three individuals know of Braddock’s plan to try and ruin the reputation of the Alan Family, the family that founded the company Braddock now owns, all in an attempt to ensure that they cannot make a bid to run her out of business.  Only one person would potentially suspect that Glory Braddock has something rotten in mind for her biological sister, Chastity Noel.

These are not the actions of what most would consider to be a hero.  Then again, The British Bombshell has long lived by a quote from the movie Dark Knight; you either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become the villain.  Glory Braddock has the best of intentions in her heart and soul.  She truly believes that what she is doing is for the best, not just for the sport of wrestling but for her own family as well.  Her friends, family, and (former) fans may not approve of her actions right now, but she is confident that history will prove her correct at the end.  Unfortunately at the present time her actions have made her unpopular.  Her actions have made enemies of many people and at least one of them has decided to take the time to try and take out her and her family.

Luckily they failed.

Still, the question now will always be on her mind; when will they try again?  When will they strike at her family?  And perhaps an even more important question is just who is behind this?  These questions are what brings “The British Bombshell” Glory Braddock to the living room of her Miami home watching the news.  Braddock has been glued to the news ever since the incident happened.  North Carolina authorities questioned her shortly after it happened but nothing fruitful came of it…

...and it was mostly her fault...

...authorities questioned Glory Braddock and her husband Kurt as well as their daughter Melinda.  They were questioned separately but calling the police was not what Braddock wanted.  She did not want to involve the authorities.  The plans she has for the Alan family and for her own sister Chastity will definitely be borderline illegal and on top of that she is already blackmailing Meagan Collins into doing her dirty work.  Blackmail is most definitely illegal.  Thus the less police involvement the better as far as Glory Braddock is concerned.  The authorities were called by the hotel staff who heard the gunshots go down.  Before the authorities arrived, Glory convinced Kurt and Melinda to say nothing to the police.  She convinced her husband and daughter to tell them nothing.

Do you have any known enemies?  No.

Do you know of anyone who would want to hurt you or your family?  No.

It was all perfectly coordinated and choreographed.  Braddock does not want police involvement.

Braddock lifts her glass of wine to her lips and takes a sip.  This has been her routine for the past several weeks since Retribution.  Watching the news for any update on the shooting has been an obsession.  She’s been lucky thus far that the authorities have no leads.  Her concern is that this is an enemy of hers, and if they are caught then any confession they give to police may lead them straight to Glory Braddock and her less than legal activities.  Braddock would prefer to strike first and nip this problem in the bud before it escalates out of control.  And yet, the more she thinks about it, the more she realizes that it may already be out of control.

A sound from the hall startles The British Bombshell.  She immediately lowers her glass and listens.  She hears the lock on the front door starting to unlatch.  Braddock frowns as she gets up out of the recliner, rests the glass of wine on a nearby table and turns towards the living room’s exit which leads straight to the hall.  Both hands are planted firmly upon her hips as she shouts angrily…

“Melinda!” The look on the face of the blonde haired beauty is one of rage as she narrows her eyes in an angry glare towards the hall. “Melinda!  Don’t even think about leaving!”

The British Bombshell pauses for a few moments and waits.  A smirk crosses her face as she hears footsteps approaching.  It isn’t long until she sees her daughter, Melinda Braddock, emerging from the hall and into the living room area.  Melinda, also blonde, is wearing denim jeans, black boots, a white t-shirt.  She is glaring right back at her mother equally as angry.  Glory’s daughter was planning to sneak out but unfortunately for her she got caught in the act.

“Where are you going?” Glory asks inquisitively.

“Out…”

Braddock sighs and shakes her head. “I gave birth to you, raised you, and allowed you to begin training to become a wrestler.  The least you can do in return is give me more than one syllable.”

“Out...side?”

Despite herself and her frustrations at this time even Glory Braddock cannot deny that this was funny.  After a brief chuckle Glory points to the sofa. “Get over here, you smart ass.”

The British Bombshell’s daughter knows that she is beaten.  She sighs but nods her head before beginning to make her way into the living room and towards the sofa, where she sits down and awaits her mother.  Melinda Braddock has been held up here in home under lock and key for quite awhile now.  Despite not wanting to get the authorities involved to solve this mystery, Glory still wants to keep her family safe and she knows that there is still a murderer out there.  Someone still wants Glory dead, someone who wouldn’t mind taking out her family as a bonus.  It makes sense, then to protect her family by keeping them under constant surveillance.

Melinda Braddock does not like this policy.  She does not like it one bit.  Melinda is used to having her freedoms.  She is used to being able to dictate what she does and when she does it.  It wasn’t that long ago that Melinda and Glory clashed, back then it was over Melinda wanting to train to become a wrestler.  Melinda had been sneaking out to train in secret without her mother’s knowledge.  Of course, Glory now has given her daughter her blessing and Melinda is now a student at the Braddock wrestling school in London.

The British Bombshell approaches her daughter and sits down next to her on the sofa. “I told you that you can’t go out on your own right now.”

“I remember, mom.  You just don’t remember that I don’t care.”

“Do you remember how we almost got killed last month?” Glory asks in a demanding tone. “You may not like these restrictions I’m placing upon you but it’s for your own good.”

“Where have I heard that before?” Melinda asks, rolling her eyes.

“It’s the truth.”

“Says you!” Melinda exclaims as she slumps down further into the sofa, and as she folds her arms over her chest she looks exactly like a pouting child.  Glory does feel bad for her.  For all intents and purposes she has upended Melinda’s life.  Melinda was well on her way to graduating rather quickly from the Braddock Wrestling School but this incident has put a halt to her studies.  She wishes she could let Melinda live her life and a part of her wonders if she should give Melinda a little more control over her own life?

Glory’s own mother being out of the picture and her father being super controlling over her life ruined her own childhood and damn near drove her insane as an adult.  Braddock does not want to repeat those mistakes and often wonders if she is doing just that.  Then again, she knows she must keep her daughter safe.

“Mel, it isn’t safe for any of us right now.  Someone is targeting us and until I know we’re safe then I can’t have you just running around anywhere you want.  I’m sorry but it isn’t safe.”

Braddock’s daughter looks over at Glory inquisitively. “Why are people targeting you, mom?”

“I...um…” Glory is at a loss for words but only for a few brief moments.  She hates lying to her daughter but at the same time she knows that her daughter would not approve of what she is doing right now  or the business dealings that she has in mind.  As much as she hates lying to Melinda, lying is, unfortunately, the only option right now. “...I wish I knew.”

“I know…” Melinda’s voice trails off but the frustration is clear and evident “...I just wanna get out and do something, y’know?”

“I do understand the frustration, Mel.  But aren’t you afraid?  Don’t you understand the gravity of the situation?”

“Yeah, of course I do, mom.  I’m not gonna let fear run my life, though.  I’m going to stand up to fear and spit in its face.” The teenage girl smirks knowingly. “Because that’s what you’d do, right mom?”

“Normally.” Glory says as she hugs her daughter tightly.  The British Bombshell cannot help but admit that her daughter is very much like her in every way.  Melinda is beautiful, intelligent, and very stubborn.  Melinda is also willing to stand up for her own personal beliefs even in the face of authority figures who tell her to stand down.  In this case Glory Braddock is the authority figure, the parent, whom Melinda is standing against.  Knowing this, Glory cannot stay mad with her daughter for very long.  Braddock kisses Melinda on her forehead.

“Tell you what, I know you miss the school…”

“Of course.” Melinda remarks, nodding her head. “Training with Randall, Matthew, and the others...oh and ‘uncle’ Mark and ‘aunt’ Sophie!”

Uncle Mark and aunt Sophie, of course, are Mark and Sophie O’Brian, while not biologically related to Glory in any way, the sibling pair are the closest of friends with Glory Braddock.  The trio are so close that Melinda considers them family.  Braddock nods her head.

“So why don’t we go to my private gym here in the house?  We can spar.”

Melinda’s eyes grow wide with anticipation.  “You wanna spar with me?”

“Of course.  I think it may do you some good.”

“I thought you didn’t want to train me?”

“You’re right, I didn’t want to take part in your training because I was worried I’d end up doing to you what my dad did to me.  But one thing dad did for me that I appreciated a great deal was our sparring sessions.  Going up against him was a great way to prepare myself for the rigors of life inside the ring.”

“How long did it take before you ever beat grandpa?”

“Honestly I’m not sure.” Glory says with a bit of laughter. “It took several tries, that’s for sure.  My dad never lost his edge and he never took it easy on me, so don’t expect me to take it easy on you.”

Melinda smirks. “I wouldn’t expect anything less.”

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April 8th, 2020

Miami, Florida

Off Camera

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Just a little less than an hour later and Melinda Braddock finds herself standing on a blue amateur wrestling mat staring across at her mother, a woman known in wrestling circles as The Best in the World when it comes to wrestling.  And this person, this so-called “Best in the World”, is who Melinda will be sparring with today.  Melinda’s excitement is over the top but she is able to maintain her composure.  She doesn’t want her mother to suspect that she is anxious.  But Glory, being the veteran that she is, most definitely suspects it.  Hell, she is counting on it.

“Ok, Mel, are you ready?”

“I was born ready, mom.”

“Then let’s go.”

Glory and Melinda march towards each other and they meet in the center.  Immediately Glory goes for the legs, picks her daughter up, and drops her down to the mat in a variation of the suplex.  Glory doesn’t stop there as she immediately locks in a side headlock. “So now what are you going to do, Mel?”

“I got a plan…”

“Well here’s a piece of advice; don’t advertise it.”

Melinda grunts with frustration.  She is slightly humbled but still somewhat confident.  The nerves and anxious feelings are now fully gone as she wants to just simply beat her mother, or at least put her down one good time.  Melinda plants one foot, and then plants the other, and then she begins to force her way up to her feet.  Once Melinda is back to a vertical base she takes Glory and drops her with a belly to back suplex, thus breaking the headlock.  Glory scrambles back to her feet quickly and finds her daughter smirking arrogantly.

“How was that for a counter, mom?”

“Oh it was great, Mel…” in a sudden motion Glory snatches hold of her daughter’s arm, leaps up, and brings her down as she applies the triangle choke she likes to call The Shekhinah Glory “...but do not get cocky, kid.”

Braddock waits for the tap out, which she assumes is inevitable.  Surprisingly enough, Melinda doesn’t give up as quickly as she expected.  A few seconds pass and still nothing from Melinda who still tries to find an escape.  The competitor in Glory wants to keep it locked in but her maternal instincts are too great and she is just about to break the hold to check on her daughter when Melinda finally taps out.  The moment Melinda’s hand hits the mat for the tap out, Glory relinquishes the hold.  The British Bombshell scrambles to her feet but quickly helps her daughter to her feet as well.

“Bloody hell, Melinda!  You should have tapped out earlier!  What the hell were you thinking?!”

“Sorry, mom, but I just didn’t want to give up too soon.  I wanted to see if I could escape but I…” Melinda shakes her head, clearly disappointed in herself “...I couldn’t.  Sorry…”

“No, there’s nothing to be sorry for.  You were damn good to last that long.  But you did scare the hell out of me, love.  And I’m sorry for being too rough on you.”

“Too rough?” Melinda asks curiously.  Glory nods her head.

“I told myself that I wouldn’t be like my dad, that I wouldn’t be too tough on you, but I was just like him.  I shouldn’t have used Shekhinah Glory against you.”

“Mom…” Melinda places a comforting hand on her mother’s shoulder “...if I am to grow in this sport then I need you to be tough on you.  When I make my debut and start competing for real, they aren’t gonna take it easy on me, and I don’t need you taking it easy on me either.  Ok?”

“That’s what my dad always said…” Glory says with a sigh.

“Well he was right.”

The British Bombshell nods her head in agreement, but it was mainly just to appease Melinda.  In truth, she isn’t sure if Glenn Braddock was right about his philosophy of being tough on his children.  Glory is convinced that he did more harm than good and she is determined to be better than him.  He is determined to protect Melinda and send her into the world ready to protect herself and prepared to become a success.

Protection is what Glory Braddock is most concerned with right now.  She wants to protect her family from this person (or people) who targeted them back in March.  Who was it and why?  The list of potential enemies who would stoop to those lows is quite large.  Who can Glory trust?  To be honest, there are not many who Glory Braddock feels she can trust.  But there is one person she knows she can trust above anyone else.

“Mel, I’ll be right back…”

Glory Braddock turns and walks away.  She steps off of the mat and approaches her gym bag.  She reaches inside and finds her cell phone.  She pulls it out and quickly dials a number.  She waits for an answer…a smile creeps across her face…

“Hi, Sophie!  It’s me...we need to talk…”

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April 9th, 2020

Miami, Florida

Off Camera

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The dining room was exquisite and a grand space, to say the least. The huge mahogany table took up most of the vast space the dark, romantic room offered left without a tablecloth.  Down the center of the table was a runner with Celtic design woven in gold and green into the fabric itself. At the end of the table were floor to ceiling french doors, left slightly ajar to let in the scented summer air. The polished silver cutlery was heavy to the hand and shone brightly in the early evening light. At each place stood a tall empty wine glass and there were beautifully folded napkins to match the runner.  Two tall, silver candelabras commanded attention from the center of the table, holding smooth white candles whose wax never dripped.  The walls were covered with a shimmering gold paper and in the middle of the ceiling above the carved mahogany table was a candelabra.  The missing piece is the food and the guests.  If there were guests they would hear the laughter coming from just outside of the dining room.  This laughter grows louder until eventually the source is just outside and, finally, two women enter the dining room…

Glory Braddock followed by her best friend Sophie O’Brian.

Sophie has never been to Glory’s Miami, Florida home before.  For the most part, Sophie prefers to stay in her Northern Ireland home or near London, England for the sake of the wrestling school.  She will travel for her wrestling purposes if necessary but those are the only three reasons she ever travels.  Sophie is not the traveling type but she will make exceptions for one person and one person only; Glory Braddock.  This is a close relationship nourished and formed by Glenn Braddock.  Glory’s father took Sophie and her brother Mark in when they left their abusive father.  Glenn trained them both how to wrestle, at the time as a means to defend themselves, but they took it a step further and used the new skill to make a new, better life for themselves.  Sophie O’Brian to this day feels she owes her life to Glenn Braddock and thus she is and always will be devoted to the Braddock family.

This devotion has continued on through to Glory Braddock. Sophie and Glory are are closer than just best friends.  They are almost like sisters.  Sophie will do anything that Glory asks of her and The British Bombshell knows this.  Braddock knows that there are very few people who she can trust with her illicit secrets but of those few only one will not cast judgment upon her for what she is preparing to do…

...that person is Sophie O’Brian.

“And this is the dining room…” Glory says with a proud grin upon her lovely features.  Glory has been giving Sophie the grand tour of her Miami home and has only just now got to the dining room.  Sophie looks around at her surroundings and nods her head.  Sophie is not typically one to be impressed by lavish luxury but even she must admit that this is impressive.

“This is truly quite a nice home you have, Gloria.”

“Thank you.” Glory motions to the table. “Please, sit, I’ll bring you a glass of wine.”

“No, thanks.” Sophie answers, shaking her head.  The raven haired beauty approaches the chair and then pulls up a seat, sitting down in it.  Her friend, Braddock, shrugs her shoulders.

“Good, more for me then.” The British Bombshell winks as she walks to a nearby counter and produces a wine bottle in a corner.  She reaches up onto a shelf, finds a glass and then pours some red wine into the glass.  Glory Braddock takes a sip of her freshly poured wine and sighs with pleasure.  The beautiful blonde then walks over to Sophie and sits down in the chair next to Sophie.

“So you like the home then?”

“I do.” Sophie answers with a nod of her head.  “I never took you for one who enjoys luxury, though.”

“What can I say?  I’ve earned it.” Glory takes a sip of her wine.  Sophie studies her friend for a few moments, taking in every word of what she just said.  A smirk forms upon Sophie’s face.

“This must be your mother’s traits coming out in you, am I correct?”

“Huh?”

“Oh, I’m just pointing out that your father would not be caught dead in such a grand estate as this one.  His tastes were far more simple.”

Braddock sighs and nods her head. “Yes, this is very true.  You wouldn’t imagine how much arm twisting it took to get dad to move in with me here.”

“I am surprised he gave in and actually let you have your way.  We both know how stubborn your father could be.” Sophie remarks.  Glory nods her head in agreement.

“Dad was quite stubborn about it.  To be honest, he never liked Miami.  I think part of it was he just missed London.  But we couldn’t risk him being alone.”

“And what do you mean by that?” Sophie asks inquisitively.  Glory sighs.

“I mean by himself.  Early last year he was diagnosed with epilepsy. I was lucky to be there when he had his first but hell right on the beach but who is to say that was his first?  He could have been having them a long time, Sophie.  You know just as well as I do that blows to the head in this sport take their toll and he has been in this sport for a very long time.  He gave his body to this sport as long as he could and only stopped competing because he was forced to due to injury.  Then he found a new way to give to the sport by training others but even then he hurt himself.  Epilepsy was going to kill him eventually, Sophie.  The best thing I could do for his sake was to keep him as close to my side as I could.”

Braddock’s Irish friend looks deep into Glory’s eyes.  They are tearing up.  Sophie knows better than anyone else just how close Glory was to her father.  She is also one of the few who know about the secret problems that the two had with one another.  Sophie knows of Glory’s innermost desire to somehow be better than her father, not just at wrestling but at life, and she knows how guilty this must make Glory feel even to have these thoughts.

“It’s ok, Gloria.  But, uh, if your father never really cared for the lavish lifestyle you’re living right now then where did you get these tastes from because it most certainly was not from him?  Was it from your mum?”

“Mary was never around after they divorced.” Glory’s tone suddenly changes to one of angst. “I would not have gotten anything from her.  This elegance you see is just because I earned it, Sophie.  I deserve it for everything I have done for wrestling.  I run a promotion, I train the next generation, and I compete.  I think I’ve earned all of this elegance.”

“Fair point.” Sophie concedes with a nod of her head.  Sophie stares across at her friend, who silently takes a sip of her wine.  Sophie still is waiting for the other shoe to drop.  She knows that Glory didn’t ask her to come down to Miami just to gloat about her elegant home.   Luckily she doesn’t have to wait much longer as Glory sets the wine glass back down on the table.

“This luxury does come at a cost, though, and I don’t just mean financially.”

“Another good point.  Any kind of success comes with a price.   Your own father knew that better than anyone else because he was targeted by many a competitor who wanted to take him out simply to make a name for themselves.”

The British Bombshell nods her head.  Glory recalls all too well about how her father had his career injured by Thomas Van Stanton, Henry and Mason’s father, during a wrestling match.  The Van Stanton family have long claimed that Thomas never wanted to injure Glenn but Glory has never believed it.

“Funny you mention that, Sophie.  You see, I have been successful.  Fourteen world championships, then I ran my own company, then I ran a wrestling school, all of this has put the name Glory Braddock on the map.  Now I am convinced that I am being targeted.”

“Does this have to do with the shooting in North Carolina?” Sophie asks with an inquisitive gaze. “You never did tell me how your family was recovering from that.”

Braddock nods her head. “You’re right...Kurt was the only one they managed to hit but he’s doing fine.  He and Melinda may be shaken up but if they are they are doing a bloody good job of hiding it.”

“Doesn’t surprise me about Melinda.” Sophie says with a grin. “She always did remind me a great deal of your father; tough as nails.”

“I should be tough enough but I’m not.  I am very concerned about this, Sophie.  This was not random, it was a targeted hit of some sort and if I am right then whoever hired them to take us out will try again.”

“You’re right…” Sophie’s voice trails off.  Glory furrows her brow in confusion.

“Right about what?”

“...I do need some of that wine.”

Glory rolls her eyes.  The blonde beauty gets up out of her chair and approaches the counter where she left the wine bottle.  She produces another glass and pours the wine into the glass.  Braddock steps back over to the table and sets it in front of Sophie.  The Irish beauty takes a sip of her wine and sighs.

“Did you talk to the authorities?”

“Yes but I told them nothing.”

“Good.” Sophie nods her head approvingly. “I know only bits and pieces of what you’ve been up to lately, Gloria, but those bits and pieces are enough to tell me that you could get in trouble with the authorities.  Correct?”

Under normal circumstances Glory would have lied.  But she trusts Sophie with her life.  Braddock nods her head. “Yes, you’re right.”

“I thought so.” Sophie takes another sip of her wine. “Look, I will not ask you to divulge any information for the sake of plausible deniability.  What I will tell you is that you know better than anyone else who your enemies are.  Some of those enemies are those closest to you.  Trust no one, Gloria.”

“No one?”

“No one.” Sophie reiterates. “The individual behind this is probably right under your nose, someone close enough to you that they know your schedule.  How else would they have known that you would be in Raleigh that day?”

“That makes sense.” Glory admits.

“So what you need to do is to get a list of suspects close to you and interrogate them.  Find out what they know.  Slowly weed through the list until you have found your man...or woman...responsible for the shooting.”

Sophie’s words make sense to Glory Braddock.  Only someone close to her would have known that she was to be in Raleigh that day meeting with Mason Van Stanton.  Thus the suspects must be someone close to her, someone with something to gain from her being eliminated.  But who?

“Mason Van Stanton.”

Mason?” Sophie asks curiously.

“He has always hated me and my family.”

“Ok, plausible starting point.  Who else?”

“Meagan Collins.”

“Why her?”

“I’m currently blackmailing her.”

“Ah, I see.  Definitely a motive there.”

“Seth Rogers.”

“Seth Ro….oh yes, the private investigator you hired to dig up dirt on Ms. Collins and Matthew Alan’s family, right?”

“Yes.  He does his business in a less than legal manner.  He is the one who obtained the information I needed to blackmail Collins.  My downfall would definitely lead to his but if I was taken out then he could ensure nothing incriminating would lead back to him.  Plus his operation is based in North Carolina.”

“This is all excellent.” Sophie says as she sips her wine. “This is also just the beginning.  Take these leads and run with it.  One of them may be responsible but then again, it may be none of them.  It could be someone you’re not even thinking of.  Suspect everyone and trust no one.  That is how you survive this, Gloria.”

Sophie holds up her glass of wine, offering a toast.  Glory smirks as she clinks her glass of wine to Sophie’s.  The friends sip their wine in unison.