Piper and the Paparazzi King

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Wyatt was healing from his hip surgery after an attack by Titus Owens, and things were finally back to life as usual on the set of Dangerous Games. Part reality show, part underground fight club based on wrestling, the show was pure chaos, and he was the ringleader to madness. Although a lot of the show was scripted for the reality show side of things, behind the scenes it was just as dangerous as it was on set.

Wyatt’s idea to start a real-life fight event, as opposed to the traditional style pro-wrestling, was something short of genius in bringing in fans. Focused on the life of superstar paparazzi king, and MMA fighter, Ford ‘The Engine’ Collins, the prior year’s reality series gimmick took them straight to A-list stardom. Along with his ex-wife, and Wyatt’s daughter, Naomi, Ford became an instant star. Other celebrities in the company ranged from underground street fighters to MMA and wrestling stars. But the real star-studded Dangerous Games icon was the handsome celebrity fighter himself, Ford Collins.

Unfortunately, the show had taken a dip in ratings when the rival fighter, Titus, forced Ford into hiatus from injuries after the attack months before. The show was doing well, but reality fans weren’t interested in the new up-and-coming stars. They wanted Ford. Because of the incident at the pay-per-view, and his tumultuous media-covered divorce, Ford decided not to put his daughters through such exposure and pain. They had seen enough of that, and he wanted to protect them at all costs. So, in recent months, he virtually went into hiding; as much as a celebrity could at his status.

Still walking on crutches from the attack, Wyatt didn’t let the drama slow him down. After all, everyone knew the retired wrestler as being one for putting his nose in his reality stars’ business to stir up drama. Under the terms of the show contracts, a few battle wounds were just a daily routine in his crazy life. If you were even willing to sign on the dotted line, you knew what you were in for when walking down that ramp to the arena floor. Only the film crew were safe, and if you stepped foot in front of the camera, you had better be ready for what was coming.

The attacker, Titus, had become a loose cannon after Wyatt’s daughter had set the monster loose on the company. He wanted to be on top, and he would, no matter who stepped in his way to fame. Wyatt let him stay on at the show because of the simple fact he put on great fights, despite being a little more ruthless and dangerous than the rest of the roster. Most of his fighters had a code of respect and safety protocol, but not Titus. He was out for blood, and everyone knew to steer clear of him. A drawback of hiring amateur street fighters versus professionals in the field.

Tapping his fingers on the desk in his office, Wyatt questioned everything he knew about show production and the fight community. More so, he was questioning his past decision to bring his selfish daughter into the cruel world he had built.

“I just don’t understand it, Rusty. Naomi could have had everything she wanted if she just waited until my retirement to take over the production company. But no! She has to stab her own family in the back.”

“Dad, at least Ford stayed to take up the slack after the divorce. Naomi is out on a world media tour and away from everyone, for now. I think it was the best choice to get her off the show and away from everything for a while, and isn’t feeding into Titus’ greed. You knew those high-dollar fight money purses would get you into trouble, eventually.”

Rubbing his chin, he agreed. “I know, Son. It’s my fault for pushing our fighters too hard. I set the stage for them to be ruthless and some of them took things too far. Maybe Ford was right. We need to hone things in and set some ground rules. This no-rules clause is going to be our downfall if we don’t watch out.”

“No, it’s what makes our company great. We’re unique. Titus took things too far, and that’s on him. The rest of the fighters know when to back off. Attacking you was not part of the game. We need Ford back, but he just isn’t himself right now. Since the divorce, he pretends to be fine at work, but at home, he’s a mess. He feels like this whole thing is his fault.” Rusty shook his head. “I shouldn’t have pushed for him to get in the circle with Titus while he worried about his personal life. His head wasn’t in the game.”

“He is the game, Son. Without Ford, the show is just a bunch of macho Neanderthals fighting over a payday. That fact remains, I should have talked to you and Naomi about turning over the company to Ford after I retire. Maybe she wouldn’t have gone rogue. The fact is, he’s got a good mind for this business, and I think he can do things with this company that have never been done before.”

“But retirement is a long time off for you, and for now, he’s going to remain second in command. I’ve accepted he will be my boss someday. Ford knows this company inside and out, and we agreed it’s what’s best for the business.”

Nodding, the older man sat back in his office chair with a sigh. “Retirement is not so far off, Rusty. Old Dad doesn’t have much fuel left in these rickety old bones. I have a broken hip, and I’m lucky it didn’t put me out for good.”

“Dad, you’re the best in the business. Naomi is just a brat that you need to put her in her place.”

“I don’t know why your sister would think she would be the one to take over, anyway. After that, I know she is not responsible enough to run this company. She messed up when I gave her the chance to run the reality show side of things months ago. This is just more proof she’s too unreliable and runs off emotions.”

“That’s true, Dad. She’s a loose cannon.” Rusty shrugged, knowing this wasn’t the first time they had this conversation about his sister.

“That’s an understatement. She’s completely unhinged. My whole creative team almost ended up leaving because she ruined the reality show scripts. She does well with the marketing team, but that’s all she has ever done well here. Smooshing up celebrities and talking to the media is her thing. All she thinks about is being in the limelight.”

“Who you tellin’? My production crew is ready to take her out. It’s not been the same the last few years with the roster either. They all can’t stand her bossing them around all the time. She’s my sister, but damn, she needs to chill out.”

“Yeah, I agree. Listen, we’re losing ratings, and we need someone to bring back some fire to the show.” Wyatt scratched his head, thinking of an idea to improve things. “We both know the network already hates that we do real-life fight club events, but they keep it up for the money they are raking in. If we don’t get our ratings back up, they will cancel the show. The fact is, we need Ford, but he’s just not in a good headspace. We both know he’s the only person who can pull us out of this rut, so we have to figure out a plan.”

Taking a piece of hard candy from the jar on his father’s desk, and popping it in his mouth, Rusty tried to come up with a solution. Rolling the cherry drop over his tongue, he thought about something he thought might ease some of the tension around the office, and mostly for their soon-to-be leader, Ford.

“Dad. I have an idea. I may have a way to help Ford and get him ready to be back in the ring, but it’s not going to be easy. We have a fight ahead of us, and it starts with him.”