2020: How The Mighty Fall

Inside a plush executive suite in a 5 star London hotel, Clarke Carlisle’s cracked a satisfied grin as he finished reading the latest report on the rising star Ria Morphy. He closed her file on his tablet computer then muttered, "The girl is phenomenal." Once again Ria's performance was off the scale in every test, chart and measurement. He thought her CV was spectacular and her background very interesting. He then glanced at the TV screen.

And there she was accepting an employee award.

Clarke was even more impressed. He had only seen a passport photo and a few stills. But now he could see Ria’s full figure in a long black ball gown. Her brown flawless complexion with large oval eyes and long slender arms. She was tall and elegant, her hair long, black and silky. And her voice, she spoke like an angel. No hint of her Sri Lankan accent which surprised him. He glanced at his assistant, "I must meet her, James."

"You regret not being downstairs handing out the award?"

Clarke snapped at James, his elderly PA and the closest of his associates. "Of course." Clarke was a brilliant mind but was socially flawed. He struggled with women to the point of bitterness, and shunned the limelight enough to be considered a recluse. "I did try. That’s why I’m in this bloody hotel. But… but I just can't cope with public gatherings and… you know what I’m like around beautiful women."

"Shall I bring Ria to you, Sir? I know you've been waiting for an opportunity."

"Yes. Do that. Tell her I want to offer some free advice. And some of my investment tips."

~

Ria accepted the applause of the crowd. Despite being blinded by the foot lamps and stage lights, she had just given her word-perfect acceptance speech after collecting her employee of the year award. Despite apparent nerves and signs of emotion etched on her face, she felt calm, it was just a show of humility. She believed it was a way connecting to the audience and holding them in her hand.

She always knew how to be loved.

Ria had confidence. She knew she was as intelligent and hardworking as she was beautiful.

At thirty, Ria's career was skyrocketing. But with every quick promotion caused another so-called friend or two to fall into jealousy. She had discovered over recent years that if a woman didn't like her it was because they were jealous or found her intimidating. As for men, they were easier to deal with as they more than often wanted to get in her panties. Of course, this could be problematic or dangerous, but Ria was strong and would usually run rings around any male who would try to take advantage.

Fiercely resilient and strong. Ria was a born matriarch.

During the after-party when Ria received an invite to the executive suite of the hotel she didn't feel compelled to accept it. Instead Ria challenged the elderly messanger. " Who has put you up to this, James?"

"Clarke Carlisle. I’m his PA. I also served his late father, Carlton Carlisle."

"What? Double C has sent you? Now I know you're lying."

"No. He told me he has been following your progress over the past 18 months."

"Clarke Carlisle? The famous investor and business tycoon is interested in my career?" Ria watched the elderly man nod. " I heard he was here but I haven't seen him. Wait... Is this something to do with my husband, Dan? He loves an elaborate practical joke?"

The old man raised his bushy gray eyebrows. He seemed taken aback. "No. I assure you." He placed a business card in Ria's hand. "Mr. Carlisle avoids the media and the public in general. He instead had it recorded by a video team, and watched the event on the television from his suite. But he told me he wants to meet you in person."

Ria twirled the card between her long piano playing fingers as she contemplated the offer. But then she did the unthinkable. "Give Mr. Clarke my sincere thanks." She gave the card back to the man. "But if he really does want to meet me, then he can come down to the conference hall."

Clarke's PA looked shocked, as if it was a act of career suicide to reject and offer from Clarke Carlisle. But it was also the look of a man who had been set an unpleasant task of relaying bad news to a spoilt and bad-tempered child.

~

Clarke threw a fit on hearing the news but just stopped short of handing James a battering. He paced the room instead talking to himself, kicking furniture and punching the pillows on the couch.

James offered, “May I suggest you go down and talk to her. She has challenged you. If you met the challenge head on, she will see it as a massive compliment. She will see that you are serious.”

Clarke looked at the ceiling, closed his eyes and ordered, “Get me my calmers, and a large whisky.”

The aircon hummed in the background as the room slipped into near sub zero. Clarke always believed the cold lessened his social anxiety and stopped his sweats. He gazed into the mirror then fixed his black tie. His freshly shaven face smiled back at him but he wished he could believe in his looks as much as his businesses sense. “Wish me luck James.”

“Good luck Sir. And if it fails, it’s because it’s not meant to be. She is a married woman after all.”

“James. It’s meant to be, right? And stop sounding like my dead mother.”

The moment the elevator doors opened panic set in. Clarke felt his heart race as he entered the conference hall. His hands were clammy, his mouth dry. He cut through the crowd as quick as he could, avoiding making eye contact with those who wanted to speak to him and making excuses to those who tried to stop him.

His eyes finally set on what he longed for.

Ria was sitting at a table with her management team. Clarke took a deep breath, then introduced himself. "Hello Ria."

"Oh.” Ria looked startled. “Mr. Carlisle?" Ria and her team got to their feet as if Clarke was royalty.

"So..." Clarke gestured for the others to sit but Ria stayed standing. “I see you know who I am, Ria?”

"Of course. Your father, Carlton created Carlisle Investments Group but you are a business mogul in your own right. That you are the biggest shareholder of PJT, the company I work for." Ria put down her glass then offered her hand. His clammy handshake told Ria Clarke was nervous . "Forgive me for turning down your offer, Mr. Carlisle."

"Please call me Clarke.” Clarke smiled and did his best not to let his words race quicker than he can speak them. “I rarely attend public events. I stay out of the public eye as much as possible. So, I suppose it was going to take someone special to get me in the public gaze."

"Sorry. I was just a bit suspicious."

"Suspicious?" Clarke sudden felt hot under his collar. "Why? You think bad of my intentions?"

"No. It’s not you. I’m married to a prank artist. "

Clarke winced at the word married. Yet he knew Ria had a husband. Indeed, he had a sleuth secretly investigate her husband a month before. He found Daniel to be a very ordinary man. Wholly unremarkable in every aspect. Indeed the only thing surprising was that a man such as Dan was married to Ria. "Practical jokes should be illegal, Ria."

"I agree. Dan loves them and even had his own Youtube channel dedicated to pranks when he was a student."

"Would Dan try and make a fool of you on your big night?"

"No. But, I just didn't believe that an extraordinary man like you, Clarke, would want to see me."

"Well I have been, ever since your director made me aware of you last year.”

“Patrice?”

“Yes. Patrice told me he had never met such a capable young woman and that I should think about meeting you in person. That you might be useful higher up the food chain, as it were."

"Oh, that's very flattering. "

"So I've been following your career ever since."

Ria’s brown cheeks flushed russet and she combed her glossy black hair behind her dainty ear. Although Clarke's words were everything she wanted to hear, she looked away for a moment like a shy schoolgirl finding the courage to meet his eyes once more. "I hope meeting me face to face is not disappointing. "

"No. Not all. I find you enchanting, my dear."

"Enchanting? Steady on…” Ria chuckled. “No, actually, please continue."

"Put it this way. In my forty years on this earth I've never seen such power in a woman.” Clarke felt as though he was chipping away at Ria and that she was beginning to fall to his charm. He was loving every second of her company. His nerves were replaced by a new-found confidence. “Especially so much ability in such a young and youthful body. You look no older than a teen and possess the charm of youth. But you also have the intelligence and confidence in your decision making of someone with decades of political and business acumen. You’re stunning in every way."

"Wow. You sure know how to flatter a woman."

"Put Margaret Thatcher's brain in Ariana Grande's body, and you have Ria Murphy."

Ria snorted a laugh. "Maybe I spoke too soon."

"Too far?"

"Well, that sounds quite Frankensteiny."

"Luckily, hanging out with dead people is not my thing."

Ria was enjoying this jousting and could tell Clarke liked her, and was growing in confidence. He had a nice smile and she also found salt and pepper hair attractive on a man with a healthy tan. His broad shoulders and strong chin made him rather handsome. It might have been no more than two minutes but Clarke had evolved from awkward sweaty mess, to a charming man - one Ria considered attractive. She enjoyed the game, and continued,"Then tell me…Clarke. What is your thing?"

"You."

“What?” Ria mocked a sense of shock, and rocked back on her high heels. "I’m flattered. But..."

“I’m being truthful.”

Ria reached out and briefly felt his arm. “Thank you.” But she then had to begin the process of putting Clarke down as soft as possible. “But please, there is no need to flatter me.”

"I would like to invite you to my apartment upstairs so we can talk properly and discuss your career."

Ria suddenly straightened her back. She heard alarm bells ringing in her head. "Could we not do it here, or maybe in the office at a later date?"

"I want to get to know you, and allow you to get to know me."

"That's... very nice."

"I’m not very good at talking, as you can see.” Clarke was now sensing the situation slipping away, and there was now a sense of desperation in his voice. “But I can be very good for your career. In return, all I ask for is for your friendship."

"It would have to be strictly professional."

Clarke cracked a cheeky smile. "I can pay for sex. It's not the first time."

"Mr. Carlisle."

"A joke."

"I’m a woman Clarke. Not just that, but a married woman. You can’t behave like that with me. What would my husband say?"

Clarke’s pride was hurt. He felt a swelling anger from deep within and was now on the attack. "Dan would have nothing to worry about? A man such as he should be thankful, if anything. For I will be helping his wife fulfill her ambitions and dreams.”

“I don’t mean to sound rude, Mr. Carlisle. But what could you possibly know about my dreams and aspirations.”

“I know you grew up wanting to be a classical Indian dancer, then in your teens you wanted to be a Bollywood actress. But once in college your father pressured you to train as a lawyer. After fleeing the civil war to Switzerland you studied Law for a year but had a change of heart and you were advised by a friend to study Human Resources- the same as she."

"How do you know all this?"

"I’m interested in you. In fact, I’m passionate about you. I’ll help you reach directorship and also bring a dance teacher from India to train you."

"You’ve thought about this, us a bit too much. And, to be honest, you're starting to make me feel uncomfortable."

Clarke saw that Ria was about to take a step back towards her table, so reached out and grabbed her upper arm. "Come with me please. Let me prove that we are made for each other. "

"Me Carlisle. This is inappropriate behavior. Please let go of me immediately…"

"Please, don’t make a scene."

"You’re the one making a scene. Now get your hands off me.” Ria felt Clarke tighten his grip. “I said, get off me, creep! You’re hurting me."

Shocked. Clarke let go then watched an angry Ria storm back to her table, giving him the dirtiest of looks. He turned away and paced towards the elevators. His mind was a whirl of sorrow and embarrassment. He had been made a fool of, and worse, he felt the eyes of the room upon him.

Ria had not just publicly scolded Clarke, she had burned him at the stake.

~

Clarke left the hotel within an hour and fled back to his countryside mansion in Sussex. That night he could not sleep for the feeling of resentment towards Ria. He believed he had put himself out on a limb for her. Smashed his comfort zone only to have it all thrown back in his face. He thought Ria was a fake, a lie… a bitch.

His smartphone pinged. It was the director of HR at PJT. Ria’s boss. It was warning Clarke that Ria had filed a formal complaint. Clarke screamed in pain. He felt he was in a fight to the , and needed to show Ria what he was made of.

It was clear he was going to have to destroy the thing he loved.

Ria was living on borrowed time.

In order to sleep Clarke needed to knock himself out. Not through prescription or but through a good old-fashioned guilt wank. He wanted to rub himself to Indian girls. No doubt some poor Indian girl who had a passing resemblance to Ria getting abused in some perverted way. He skimmed through the porn sites on his smartphone and came across the same old videos he’s wanked to before.

But Clarke needed more. He then had an idea. The year before he invested in an app firm that had developed a powerful facial search engine. Because of privacy fears regulators the company to tone it down for commercial use. But Clarke had the original app on his smartphone. “Can’t believe I’ve not thought of this before.”

He copied Ria’s passport photo into his image search app. He was hoping, at best, to find a girl who looked like she could be a sister or relative.

The app then confirmed 776 matches. Of course the bulk of images came from Ria’s Insta and FB accounts. But over 100 of them came from obscure porn sites. They were all old recordings of a model called Riya Rox. All solo shows of her stripping or playing with a dildo… but there was also a sex show with a man who didn’t look like Dan.

But Riya Rox was more than just a look-alike, it was definitely a young Ria Morphy, no doubt working her way through university.

But this gave Clarke the leverage he needed.

And he had all night to think of how to make Ria pay.

Clarke kept coming up with reasons to postpone the meeting with HR, being out of the country on business matters etc. But of course he was perfecting his plan.

A couple of months rolled by.

Clarke originally wanted to wait until April 1st, April Fools Day (Clarke likes to think he has a sense of humour) but COVID was changing the works. He had to being it forward a week because an impending lockdown. So Clarke arranged a meeting with Ria at her company HQ. A fancy office block in Canary Wharf which his investment group part funded.

In the glass walled meeting room Ria entered trying not to meet Clarke’s eyes, speaking to James instead. She looked a little shocked but soon composed herself. “I guess you want to settle this without it going to court?”

Clarke sneered. “I’m going to settle this, all right.”

“So, what do you propose? But before I sign anything, I’m going to have to have my lawyer review it.”

“I’m not going to waste your time. Look at my tablet.” Clarke gestured to James to hand over the tablet.

Smiling, Clarke gleefully watched the colour drain from Ria’s pretty face. Within seconds she looked deathly ill. Ria's voice quivered, “Where did you get these?”

“It doesn’t matter.”

Ria closed the page then pushed the tablet back across the table. “What are you going to do with them?”

“Firstly, I want you to withdraw your complaint.”

“You bastard.”

“Yes. I suppose I am.” Clarke crossed his arms across his chest. “But I can live with that.”

"You’re blackmailing me. That’s illegal. I hope this is an April's Fool.”

“No, it is not. I have two conditions or I will make sure the videos are leaked not just to the board of directors, but also colleagues… family and friends. I will ruin you, just as you tried to ruin me.”

“I did not try ruin you. That night was your fault.” Ria barked. “You’re a monster.”

“You played me like a fool. Not only that, but you also embarrassed and humiliated me. I am merely defending my interests and reputation. You clearly care little for yours or you wouldn’t have spent years being a stripper.”

I was a broke student.” Ria could see Clarke cared little. “So besides withdrawing the harassment claim, what is the second condition?”

“A temporary job offer for Riya Rox.”

“She’s dead. I killed her in 2013.”

“As well as a cam model you were an escort.”

Ria felt indignant fury. “I wasn’t.”

“I saw your profile.”

“I deleted it, because I couldn’t go through with it. I never actually met any clients. It was active less than a week.”

“That’s the thing about the internet. Once it’s online, it stays online.”

Ria rested her face on her open palms. She felt tears welling but took a deep breath to settle herself. “Though I dread to ask, what’s in this offer?”

“It’s month of sexual companionship. You have to meet my needs and wants for a month. If you succeed, then I will have every single video permanently deleted and I will give you a place on the board, not just at PJT but also on Carlisle Investments Group. However, If by the end of the month you have completed all tasks, but can’t bear to look at me… which I will admit is understandable… you can forgo the job offer, but have a one-off lump sum of £200,000 tax free”

Ria reddened eye widened. “That’s a life changing sum.”

“But I’ll make you earn every penny throughout January.”

James handed over the contract to Ria. It was basically a ‘can’t say no’ contract. Ria will give away her rights as a human for the whole of January. Even if she’s on her period Ria will have to be sexually available. Ria blurted out, "This is appalling. Truly evil. You will burn in hell for this."

"Then it's good job I’m an atheist."

"You're a wanker." As Ria picked up the pen, Ria's hand shook with fear. "You'll be me."

"The contract will state your consent."

"I don't care what that says. Make no doubt, it is ."

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it. There is a lot of fun to have first. "

Ria felt sick. "Fun?"

"Yes. A series of tasks to break you, just like you tried to break me. "

Ria vision was blurred as tears began to well in her tear ducts. "Good lord. You're really are such a sick pervert."

"The best thing of this is your husband played a key role in your humiliation."

"How so?"

"He told James about all your hates."

"Such as?"

Clarke was loving every second. "Well, we all knew from your career and fantastic acceptance speech that you fight injustice, sexism and racism in the workplace. But Dan has also said you hate being mistook for being Indian, and as a result that you tried to hide your culture and accent, dress and act Western."

"What? He told you this?"

"Wait it gets better."

"He believes your a germaphobe, a prude and overly conservative in the bedroom."

"He never. He wouldn't dare"

"I guessed the last bit, but his face was a giveaway."

Ria knew her career was over. Not only that but her marriage too. Dan had a jealous streak and didn't know about her camming career… Nor her sex show with someone who later became a mutual friend.

She never hated someone more.

But she signed

Ria always suffered the January blues. It always felt the longest of months. And this January was going to prove to be the bluest and longest of them all.

Clarke watched Ria sign. "So for your first task. Just a little one, to show you're committed."