I showed him the fish my dad had caught. Zak just shrugged. I guess he wasn’t a fisherman.
“Hey, I got an invite to a party tomorrow night. Have you ever heard of
I shook my head.
“They’re, ah, models that are all natural,” he said, and I just stared at him. “Anyway, they’re having a party to introduce a new group of, ah, models.”
Something was fishy here. Zak was a little too eager and seemed to be leaving some details out.
“I’m supposed to go to a bachelor party tomorrow night,” I said, begging off.
“Invite them,” he said eagerly. “This would be perfect for something like that.”
I looked at Zak, and he broke.
“Okay, here’s the deal. I kind of said I knew you, and that I would get you to come to the party. They told me if you came, I could get in,” he said in a rush.
“I’ll ask tonight and let you know. If it sucks, I’m leaving,” I warned.
“No, you won’t,” Zak said under his breath.
I just ignored him because we were up next and Jessup was calling for us.
◊◊◊
Fritz took me to the High Performance Driving School. Devin was already there, waiting in the classroom. Today Bill taught us common-sense security tips. The one I would go out and do right away was to get a key chain that would separate. That was so when I gave them to a valet, he wouldn’t also have my house key. Others included putting your valuables in the trunk and turning off and locking your car when you’re stopped.
Then we talked about personal safety; Bill gave us a simple set of rules. Always keep your door locked. Leave ample maneuvering space between your vehicle and the one in front of you. If you’re being followed, never lead the person back to your home or stop and get out.
Most of what Bill said was to be aware of your surroundings and to trust your gut. If something didn’t feel right, then don’t talk yourself into getting hurt or robbed.
Next, Bill got more specific about both our situations. He explained that because we were in the public eye, we had to be extra careful. We could become targets of surveillance. People could monitor our movements to identify the security precautions we take, and the most suitable time, location, and method of attack. Surveillance could last for days or weeks. Naturally, the monitoring of a person who had set routines and who took few precautions would take less time.
We had to learn to detect surveillance. That required a relatively constant state of alertness and had to become a habit. A good sense of what’s normal and what’s not in our surroundings could be more important than any other type of security precaution we might take. Above all, we shouldn’t hesitate to report any unusual event.
This part of the class took the longest because Bill wanted to make sure we were aware of the potential risks. He about had a fit when he heard my mom sold real estate. I agreed to have her come in tomorrow so he could sit down with her and talk about personal security. The main reason was that she was now the mom of a potential target, and could be caught in something nasty because of my celebrity. He had my full attention.
Then we went out and drove. Bill was my instructor again. Today was about safety and what to do in certain situations. He had staff in other cars to help with scenarios. We did a lot of exercises on what to do at a traffic light. It was easy to get yourself boxed in. He also had the car behind me bump me and showed me what to do in case of an accident. My first effort had me dead along the side of the road when I got out of the car to check the damage. For most people, that would be what you’d do, but I no longer had that luxury.
He then taught me how to drive out of danger. The bad guys’ goal would be to get me either boxed in or stopped somehow. I didn’t need to be going ninety all the time. Even simply rolling forward would make it difficult for them to get me out of the car. Reverse was also an option. If all else failed, I could smash into them to get some room to maneuver. They didn’t have me actually do that. As Bill taught me, I began to see what Fritz did when he drove.
Today hadn’t been nearly the adrenaline rush yesterday had been, but I felt safer when we were done. I was also mentally exhausted. Everything was new, and Bill pointed out many aspects I’d missed entirely. I was also a little warier after hearing his war stories and explanations of why they had us drive particular ways. He assured me that with practice and awareness, I would be much safer.
◊◊◊
We gave Devin a ride to his hotel.
“That was eye-opening,” Devin said.
“How did you do when they staged the accident?”
“I died.”
“Me, too,” I admitted.
He became quiet for a little while.
“I talked to Cora about a prenup. She wasn’t happy, but I had a long talk with my lawyer. Even though everything’s in a trust, I still had exposure if for some reason we don’t work out. I told her we weren’t going to get married if we didn’t have one in place,” Devin said.
“I would bet your Board of Directors and Sandy felt better.”
