Page 101 of The Interview
“You know anything about this?” Cam asks Len, the person in charge of clearing up after any members of the band or their associates fuck ups.
“Nope. Definitely not something doing the rounds back then,” Len says. “What’s it of?”
“It’s the altercation between Georgia and Haley White,” Daniel explains.
I get an instant headache as relief washes through me.
“Yes! Yes!” Marley claps his hands. “Heard it was brutal. Let’s see it.”
“Really?” I lean around Ash and ask my brother.
“Really. I don’t condone violence… usually. Don’t do this at home, kids.” He points to the camera. “But fuck me, I wanna see the bitch take a beating.”
“You all right with this?” Cam puts his hand on my shoulder.
I tilt my head back and look up at him, wide-eyed, hoping he reads my silent message of:what the actual fuck? I thought we’d been busted and filmed fucking there for a minute!
His lips twitch, and he gives a slight nod, which means he knows exactly what that look meant.
“Why the fuck not?” I tell him. “Roll it,” I tell Daniel. “Kids, Mum and Dad, I’m sorry. This is not my finest behaviour.”
The security camera footage is in black and white, but considering it’s from the nineties, the quality is really good, and the image clear. The camera’s pointed towards the roped-off entryway to the VIP area, and Haley White can be clearly seen arguing with the two bouncers. I’m assuming because they’re not letting her in.
“If it was invite only, what the fuck was she doing there?” Ash questions.
“How did she get anywhere?” Len asks. “Whatever you think of her, she was resourceful.”
Conversation carries on around me, but I can’t take my eyes off the woman on the screen. She’s wearing a really tight, white, button-up, cropped shirt, a tartan mini skirt, and ballet flats. Her hair is cut short on one side and spiky on top, with a long fringe hanging over one eye. I don’t know why my brain is taking in all these details regarding her appearance. The woman’s been dead a number of years, yet I still feel the anger bubbling away inside me at what her actions did to change the course of my life—what she did to Sean.
Hate is a strong word that we were never allowed to use growing up, and that’s something I’ve instilled in my kids. I used to believe hate was the opposite of love. I love fiercely, and the only two people I can honestly say I’ve had fierce feelings for that aren’t love are Haley White and Rocco Taylor. As I’ve got older, I’ve learned the opposite of hate is indifference, and I’m disappointed that’s still not what I feel towards those two. I wish it was. I wish I was the bigger person. But even now, especially with what I’ve just learned they did to Sean, if they weren’t already dead, I’d be talking to my husband or dad to make it so, and I do not have a single fuck to give as to what that says about me.
Maybe Marley’s right. Maybe I am a psychopath.
And then, right on cue, his point is proved.
I appear from somewhere behind the camera. I’m not running, but I’m taking long strides in my heeled boots and tight dress. Taking the bouncers by surprise, I push straight through them and reach for the bleached blonde in front of me. I grab the long side of her horrible, asymmetrical hair with my left hand, and punch her with my right. Her head falls back with the force, and the image is clear enough that you can see her eyes roll.
“Oh, shit!” Harry shouts.
“Fucking hell, George,” Marley says with a loud hand clap.
I watch as she goes down to the floor, and I jump right on top of her. The anger I feel now is nothing compared to the anger I felt back then, but it’s still there, bubbling away, and I don’t regret a thing I’m watching myself do. I can honestly say, hand on heart, if I bumped into her on the street tomorrow, I’d do the exact same thing. Except she’s dead, and I can’t, and maybe I wouldn’t, anyway. Who knows?
Like back then when it happened, I’m aware of the noises and the voices around me, but I can’t hear them as I watch myself punch her over and over.
“Georgia?” My mum’s voice manages to break through. “My goodness.”
“Girl deserved it, Bern, after what she put them boys through. The trouble she caused with her lies… she deserved it,” my dad says.
I watch as she puts her hands up to defend herself, to block me, so I grip her hair instead and bang her head against the floor. The whole scene plays out in less than a minute, and then Cam’s there, with his arms around my waist as he pulls me off her. I continue to lunge, kicking at Cam in my heels, pulling forward to escape him and get back at her. Soon, Dave’s there, and they’re both holding me back, restraining me. She’s still on the floor, not moving. I’m still trying to fight Cam, especially when she moves, and I realise I haven’t killed the cunt.
I lunge again. This time, Cam goes to the floor and pulls me down with him, wraps me in his arms, and holds me in a way that means I can’t move. If Daniel thought that last photo was incriminating, what must he think of these scenes?
Jimmie appears, kneeling in front of me, brushing my hair, which was barely out of place, away from my face. Ash is hovering in the background, and as they get Haley White to her feet, Ash makes her own move towards Haley, but is blocked by the bouncers.
“Fucking bouncers. I wanted to get to her so badly,” Ash says.
Haley’s bleeding from her nose and mouth. Her face is a mess; both eyes already swollen.
