Jess paced around Linda's dressing room, wringing her hands and checking herself out in the mirror. She looked good, that much she knew but good looks never defeated a good case of the willies, which she was currently going through. She was, more or less, scared shitless. She looked in the mirror again and smiled tightly. She did look good. Her long hair was tied back in a severe ponytail and she wore a pair of wide legged trousers with suspenders, a simple white ribbed cotton tank top and a jacket that reached all the way down to her knees and that matched her pants. She looked official enough, she said to herself, throwing back her shoulders.
But she wasn't quite ready, Jess reasoned, her shoulders falling. These guys weren't going to respect her. As far as they knew, she was nothing more than Test's girlfriend who couldn't even remember her prom night, which, according to Patty, had been memorable. The few people who knew about Jess's new role in the WWF had done their very best to allay her doubts about her future position but she knew that until she got out there and proved herself, she wouldn't be able to feel any better about any of it.
Stephanie came into the dressing room with a great big grin on her face. All of her lipstick was smeared over her chin. Jess smiled and calmly took a tissue from the coffee table.
"How's Jason," she asked, giving Stephanie the tissue.
"He's great. Him and Edge are so psyched... They slaughtered the New Brood."
"I know. I was watching. It was great. Where's Patty?"
"Well, when I last saw her, she was securing a car to get to the hotel as soon as your entrance was done... I think Adam and her are going to do their fair share of celebrating."
"I can only imagine."
"How are you feeling?" asked Stephanie, her eyes meeting Jess's.
"Queasy. Nauseous..."
"Like going out there could be the worst mistake of your life?"
"Yeah."
"I know. I still remember my first appearance on RAW. I thought I was going to die. I almost didn't come out. I cried and cried until Shane came over, put his arms around me and told me that if I didn't get out there, he was going to haul me down the ramp over his shoulder."
"I'm guessing you made it out there on your own?"
"I did. But it was the scariest moment in my life."
"And?"
"Once I got out there, I rocked!"
Stephanie and Jess burst out laughing at the same time and were still laughing when Linda came to get them.
"All right girls, it's time. Jess, are you ready?"
"No."
"Doesn't matter. We have a show to put on."
Linda quickly walked over to the stage entrance with Jess and Stephanie trailing behind her. They stopped at the monitor, where the stage manager stood waiting, a headset on his head. He smiled at Linda and gave the young women a curt nod.
"May be another two minutes, Mrs. McMahon."
"Thanks Jerry. Girls, you know your cues?"
"Absolutely."
In the ring, Vince and Shawn Michaels stood, exchanging easygoing banter, trying to figure who was going to win Stephanie's hand in marriage. The storyline was simple.
Test and Stephanie had tried to get "married" four times. The first marriage had been "annulled" by Vince and the other three times, interference from various members of the Corporate Ministry had stood in the way of their love. Six days from this day, there would be another PPV event and it was there that the two lovebirds were set to tie the knot. Again.
Only problem was that last night, at the end of HEAT, an event of unprecedented magnitude on the hour long show occurred. Test had been kidnapped. So tonight, on RAW, Vince was having a fight between Joey Abs and HHH to decide who would win Stephanie's very unwilling hand in marriage.
Just as Joey and Hunter shook on the deal, both of them planning to win Stephanie's hand, Linda McMahon appeared.
"No more Vince," she said into a microphone, "I'm not going to have you auctioning off our daughter to your flunkies."
"Listen Linda, here's the deal. You handle the business angle of the company and I'll handle the shows."
"And you think you can include our daughter as part of the show?"
"She chose to marry a wrestler. I'm just going to make sure she marries one that's worthy of her."
"Test is worthy of her Vince. And she loves him."
"Stephanie doesn't know anything about love. She's just a little girl."
Just then, a grim-faced Stephanie appeared. Had her eyes been a lightsaber, Vince would have been cut down like Obi Wan Kenobi.
"I'm not a little girl anymore Daddy," she said. "And I won't marry HHH or Joey."
"Oh yes you will," threatened Vince.
"Oh no I won't."
"Stephanie damn it..."
"Actually Vince," piped in Shawn Michaels, "I don't think this is such a great idea..."
"Oh really Michaels. Look at it this way... if HHH wins, who do you think will be in a prime spot to keep his belt? The championship belt?
Who will have the longest reign as the undefeated WWF champion?" Shawn stood back and turned to HHH who was eagerly nodding his approval.
In the meantime, Chyna stood back, her face a mask of anger. Naturally, this was quite a blow to her ego.
"All right," finally agreed Shawn. "I agree with Vince. Stephanie should marry HHH. I mean, the winner of the 'Groom-to-be' match."
"Actually," said Linda, "you have no say in this."
"Of course I do Linda?" asked Michaels cockily, "I'm the Commish."
"Not anymore you're not," said Linda, pulling a contract from her breast pocket. "As of now, you can consider your contract null and void."
Linda tore up the contract, dropping the pieces to the ground like confetti. The looks on every one's faces in the ring was a thing of beauty... to see so many mouths, open in a series of impotent o's made Jess who was backstage laugh so hard, it hurt her jaw. It was like watching a cartoon, where the characters' jaws dropped to the ground in shock.
"You can't do this to me," stuttered Michaels. "I'm the Commish... I'm the Heartbreak Kid... I'm supposed to keep Vince in check."
"And since you can't do that job and that he seems to be influencing your every move, I think it's fair to say you're not keeping him in check anymore, wouldn't you agree?"
"You can't fire me, you just can't."
"I can and I just did. I happen to be the only person who could fire you Michaels. And once you got on my bad side, your days here were counted."
"Linda," said Vince in a tone he'd used with his children when they weren't behaving, "this is ridiculous. How can you be expected to 'keep me in check' while you run your end of the company?"
"I don't want to do that Vince. That's why I hired a new Commissioner."
Everything went dark and when the lights came back on, Jess was standing in front of Linda and Stephanie.
"Vince, everyone, I'd like to introduce Madison. She's the new WWF commissioner. She's going to keep you all in check."
All the men and the one woman who stood in the ring heaved a sigh of relief when they saw Jess. Well, Chyna didn't feel all that comfortable. She remembered the woman and she remembered that although small, she packed a hell of a punch.
Jess calmly walked down the ramp and climbed into the ring. She looked Shawn Michaels deep in the eyes and secretly marvelled at how good looking he was. But she wasn't there to gush. She was here on business.
She snatched the microphone out of Vince's hands.
"Hello boys," she said huskily. "How does it feel to have a woman on top?"
The crowd cheered Jess on right away. It was all she needed. Their positive response. Now, all she could wish for was that the TV audience would respond to her just as well.
In the ring, the shock still hadn't worn off, so Jess kept the ball rolling.
"All right boys, you can look at me in two ways: as someone who'll make sure you guys will play fair and square or as someone who'll make your lives hell. How do you want to play it?"
"You have no authority here," said HHH, "you've got no experience and your word is worth SHIT."
"Really? As of now, you're no longer the WWF champion."
Jess was overcome by the flow of obscenities that spewed from the mouths of everyone in the ring. But she smiled it off.
"My my, what nice language. Now, the belt."
Hunter protested and swore at her, standing so close she would see his tonsils wagging in the back of his mouth. But she didn't stand down. She stared him straight in the eyes without blinking and repeated:
"The championship belt, please."
HHH went to confer with Vince, Shawn and Shane. In the meantime, Jess cooly eyed every member of the Corporate Ministry. Undertaker rolled his eyes and wriggled his tongue at her, Joey Abs made several lewd proposals and Chyna eyed her respectfully. That came as a shock to Jess who nodded and smiled to Chyna.
"Fine," said HHH coming back from his little conference, "here's the belt."
Jess knew he was going to drop it and use the occasion to beat up on her so she did what was expected of her but before Hunter hit her, her hand twisted around his genitals. His gasp of pain was genuine and her pleasure at providing it, was equally genuine.
"Are you okay," she taunted, "does it hurt down there? Funny how something so small could hurt so much."
The crowd was on its feet, cheering and laughing. And Jess loved it. She had Chyna hand her the belt and calmly informed all the people in the ring that if anyone touched her, HHH would get a reason to win an evening gown match. Once she was done, she released Hunter's balls, stepped out of the ring and joined Stephanie and Linda on the ramp.
"That went well," she said, walking backstage with a great big grin on her face.
Jess walked off the stage with a smile on her face and her arms around the McMahon women's shoulders. But she was forced to stop dead in her tracks. Someone very angry stood in her way.
"How could you?" asked Lexi.
"How could I what?"
"Take Shawn's job like that!"
"Come on Lexi, you and I both know that Vince will jump at the chance of having HBK in his pocket."
"Because you think Vince will give Shawn a job?"
"Of course," said Jess with a shrug of her shoulders.
"God, you're naive."
Jess shivered and stood back, somewhat afraid and insecure. Could it be? What if Vince didn't offer Shawn a position in the Corporate Ministry? What would happen then? She'd only taken the job because she'd thought for sure that Vince would hire the former Commish.
"I'm so sorry," she whispered.
"I wish you'd told me about it first," said Lexi.
"I couldn't. The more people knew about it, the less chance we had of this really working out."
"Yeah, but come on. You know how close and I Shawn once were. I would have told you that your becoming the new Commissioner would mean the end for him."
"HBK is too much of an asset for Vince to fire him," countered Jess.
"That's exactly why Vince would fire him. Shawn could mean the end of Vince and Vince knows it."
"And that's exactly why I didn't fire him," said Vince from behind Jess.
Jess turned around and went to stand next to Lexi. Vince stood there, surrounded by his Corporate Ministry. He looked angry, but Jess knew it was with Linda he was most angry, not her. Shawn Michaels stood off to one side, calmly eyeing Jess and Lexi. His expression was unreadable but it made the new Commissioner uncomfortable.
"Good move," congratulated Lexi, "for once it's good to see you're using your brain."
"Quite a lot of praise from you, Lexi."
"Yeah. Too much!"
"Give me my belt back Commish," said Hunter, stepping up to Jess.
"No."
"Give it to me now!"
"No."
Hunter moved to take the belt from Jess and she made a few steps backward, just enough to give her enough to make a sidekick which, when followed through, could snap a man's head off his shoulders, effectively killing him. Thank God for Hunter, when he saw her move, he'd stepped back. But Jess had calculated her move, making sure she would do no more than frighten the man.
"Another inch," she said, with her foot hovering an inch off HHH's chin, "and you would no longer have a claim to the WWF belt."
HHH seethed but knew her word to be true. He'd worked with X-Pac long enough to know that martial arts, in the hands of someone skilled, could kill. And now he knew that the new Commish was an unexpected tower of strength. He would not be able to frighten her to do his bidding, as he had with Vince.
"Fine," said Hunter, "but you'd better figure out what you're going to do with that belt, because in a week, I'll be coming back for it."
"You can try," said Jess coldly.
On these ominous words, the members of the Ministry sailed by the four women, uttering all sorts of things. The last one was the Undertaker would rolled his eyes until only the whites showed and wriggled his tongue. Once his little presentation was done and over with, Jess stepped up to him and did an exact replica of it, rolling up her eyes and flapping his tongue in his face. His expression of shock was a precious one. One that made Linda, Stephanie, Lexi and Jess laugh as he stalked away angrily.
Throughout the night, Jess came out to collect the women's belt from Ivory, who, after seeing Madison handle HHH, put up no fight, and the Tag Team Championship belts from the New Brood, who, after conferring with Gangrel, decided that it would be best to stay on her good side than to fight her.
D'Lo Brown was only too happy to have a Black woman as a commissioner and gave her his European title with a smile on his face. But one of the hardest trials that awaited Jess before the night was over was collecting the Intercontinental Championship Belt from Jeff Jarrett.
Jarrett was set to fight Val Venis in a title match that very night and Jess had thought it best to wait for the outcome of that match. She knew, for a fact, that it would be easier to collect the belt from Val Venis if she showed a little cleavage than from the woman hating Jarrett.
Jess watched from Linda's dressing room as Jarrett came out, dragging Debra by her wrist and with Miss Kitty stupidly trailing behind. He climbed on to the ring, snatched a microphone from Lillian Garcia's hand and started ranting.
"Cut my damn music! So we have a new Commish who's going to take away my belt? I don't think so! Val Venis, you can get off your high horse because you're not fighting me tonight. Tonight I want to fight the new Commish. If she wants this belt, she's going to have to win it from me."
While Jerry Lawler and J.R. droned on about this unexpected challenge, a camera crew came to the door. Linda let them in and turned to Jess.
"All right, Madison. This is it. Your decision. Will you take the challenge or not?"
The camera came in and set up. Jess stood up and straightened herself up. She squared her shoulders and nodded her okay.
"Jarrett, you've got it. I'll be taking you on in just a few minutes. But know this, I'm walking out of here tonight with your belt. Whether I win or not."
As soon as the camera left, Jess went into a flurry of movement as she undressed and pulled on a pair of track pants over a matching black leotard. She put on a pair of running shoes and was out the door before anyone could offer any advice or encouragement. As she made her way to the backstage area, Jess realised what she had to do: she had to make a good show, regardless of Jarrett.
When she came out of the black curtains, she was surprised when she heard the pop she got from the audience. They were on their feet, cheering her on as she walked down the ramp, looking at Jarrett angrily.
He barely waited for her to get into the ring before he started pouncing on her. And he hit her hard. He sent her flying into all four corners until she was limp. He threw Jess down on the mat and placed a foot on her stomach, raising his arms in victory. But when he didn't get the expected response from the crowd, he took the next step and started maneuvering for a "figure four leglock."
Jess tried not to smile. She'd been holding everything back from Jarrett, learning from his strategy. To the audience, and maybe to other wrestlers, he acted like a madman. But she had sensed a method to his madness and had let him loose on her until she figured it out. And now, she had.
Jarrett was about to immobilise her second leg when she propped herself up on her arms and kicked him in the thigh. She kicked him hard, four times until he lost control and released her second leg. Jess slid away from him and squatted, giving him a chance to get up. She then attacked him with a wild series of kicks that pretty much knocked him out. Once he was lying on the ground, unable to put up anymore of a fight, Jess knelt behind his head and waited for a three count, which the referee did rather enthusiastically.
As Jess collected the belt from the officials, Miss Kitty grabbed Jarrett's guitar and tried hitting Jess over the head with it. Jess saw the horrified look on J. R.'s face and moved out of the way, catching the guitar and snatching it out of Kitty's hands.
"You're such an idiot," said Jess, turning on Kitty. "Come on, I'm tired of stupid women in the WWF."
Jess dropped the guitar, stepped on it, grabbed the I.C. belt, and Kitty's arm. She walked past the ring, to see Debra trying to slap Jarrett back into consciousness.
"Debra," she yelled.
"He's not waking up," cried Debra. "What did you do to him?"
"Nothing. He's faking it."
"No, he's not."
As though to prove Jess right, Jarrett's hand shot out and his fingers curled around Debra's neck, strangling her. Jess move quickly and was in the ring in time to bring her shoulder down on Jarrett's chest, effectively releasing Debra. Not giving any of the two blonds more time to think, Jess dragged Debra out of the ring.
It was a sight to behold: Jarrett lying in the ring, beaten by a woman, and the new Commissioner, Madison, dragging away Kitty and Debra. J.R.'s followed, surprisingly appropriately.
"Well, one thing about our new Commissioner here in the WWF. She's true to her word. She told Jarrett she would walk about of here with that belt and she is."
Jess held on to Kitty and Debra's wrists until she had, none too gently, propelled them into her dressing room. She slammed the door shut and turned on both women.
"I have been watching the two of you prance around for months and I kept my mouth shut, but now I can't stand it anymore."
"What are you talking about?" asked Debra, waving her hands and hair around, the same way she did when she was in the ring, arguing with Jarrett.
"About you, mainly. Look at you," said Jess, pushing Debra in front of a mirror. "What do you think of your image?"
"I look good?"
"Good? Your breasts look like they're about to rise up and strangle you."
"So what? I'm not going to hide them because some people just can't deal with how beautiful I am."
"Oh you're beautiful all right. But you dress like a slut."
Jess's cold words made Debra stagger back in shock. How dare this little idiot of a woman call her a slut.
"I am no such thing!"
"And I never said you were. But you dress like one."
"You can't talk to her like that," piped in Kitty.
"Oh please. It's not like you dress any better. Both of you need makeovers. In your attitudes and your wardrobe."
"I don't think so," said Debra, heading for the door.
"Really?" asked Jess. "And when will you next be appearing on a WWF show?"
"Tomorrow, on SMACKDOWN."
"No. I'm scrapping that. Jarrett will show up on his own."
"I've got personal appearances this week."
"Scrapped."
"The house shows?"
"Scrapped."
"Why?"
"Until you and Kitty here start dressing like managers instead of hookers, all of your personal appearances are scrapped. We are women, damn it! Not sluts... so we either look and act like women, or we don't show our faces at all. Are we clear?"
Debra looked like she wanted to spit out nails in Jess's face but she turned on her heels and walked out of the dressing room, a somewhat hesitant Kitty following her.
"What the hell was that all about?" asked Lexi, coming in through the door.
"I'm making some changes around here," said Jess. "And the first thing to go is that ridiculous look for those women. We're not sluts. We're women."
"Good move. But that's not going to go over very well with the McMahon men."
"Fine. I'll be ready for them."
"Now, here's a question for you. What are you planning to do with all the belts?"
Jess smiled enigmatically and looked at all the belts lined on her couch. She had something in mind and soon, everyone would know about it.
SMACKDOWN began with a theme no one had heard before. The rhythm was tribal and primal but it had a techno edge to it that made it very modern. Pyros came on and in the middle of the light show, stood a woman. The fans recognized right away from RAW. She oozed confidence and self-assurance as she walked down the ramp to the ring. She graciously accepted the mike from the announcer and walked around, enjoying the crowd reaction.
When it finally died down, Jess smiled and brought the microphone close to her mouth.
"Welcome... to SMACKDOWN!!! Well, ladies and gentlemen, I've got news for you. Today marks the beginning of an era in the WWF. What does that mean? It means the opening of every title available to everyone who's interested. We're also welcoming the return of the Super Lightweight division... and the expansion of the women's division.
The crowd reacted very well to the news, cheering and hollering.
"So," continued Jess, "from now, until the next PPV, at every broadcast, we'll be watching the best the WWF has to offer fighting it out for the titles. And the winners in each division will be crowned at WRESTLEMANIA XVII which will be held at the Toronto Skydome."
Jess couldn't help it but smile when the crowd cheered her on so hard she thought her eardrums would pop.
Suddenly, the McMahon Men music came on. As the "No Chance" theme filled the arena, the young woman stood back, bracing herself in the ring, preparing herself for whatever would come. She was surprised, and pleased, when both Vince and Shane came out to face her. It gave her a funny feeling to know that within a day of being the new Commish, she was already making them this nervous.
"You seem to forget, Madison," said Vince, "that you're only the Commissioner. You can't take away belts and decide how you're going to give them away."
"Read my contract."
"But none of these guys will move without our OK. We still rule the WWF."
"Again, read my contract. I outrule you. Specially when it comes to cards and titles. I can do whatever I want. And all you can do, is watch."
"No... that can't be."
"It can be. And it is. You boys might hate me, but know this... you can't touch me."
The arena went dark and the HHH theme came on. He appeared, framed by lights, with Chyna, and holding on to a struggling Linda McMahon.
"They can't touch you," said HHH, "but she can. And she will."
"Tabarnac," she quickly swore in French.
It was clear that Linda was in pain and Chyna stopped Vince and Shane from doing anything to help her. So Jess decided to play it cool.
"You okay Linda?"
"I'll be better when you take care of this asshole."
Jess chuckled uncomfortably at Linda's bravado but saw the wisdom in her words. Immediately, the crowd picked up the chant, enraging HHH even more.
"Let her go HHH," said Jess.
"No! Not until I get my title back."
"So you're planning on holding on to her all the way till Wrestlemania? What are you planning to do when she has to go to the bathroom?"
"I want my title back now!"
"No! However Chyna? You can go for the heavyweight title, the I.C. title or even the women's title if you want."
"Screw that," yelled Hunter, "I'm the rightful WWF champion and I want the belt that goes along with it."
"All right, let me say it slow so I'll be sure you get it. Nnnnnoooooo. Get it?"
"Get this!"
HHH raised his arm to strike Linda but came against some unexpected resistance from... Stephanie McMahon. She held on to his arm with everything she had, effectively stopping him from hitting her mother.
While Steph distracted Hunter, Jess made her way down the ring and up the ramp, going up to him with a hard punch to his arm, making him release Linda.. Once her mother was freed, Stephanie let go of Hunter's arm, making him stagger to the side from the lack of tension.
Jess stood up close to him, looking up into what she thought were beady eyes.
"Don't you ever dare put a hand on her," she said slowly, "because I'll make you wish you'd walked out of here with Hall and Nash."
Jess saw Chyna move behind her out of the corner of her eye and spun around with a ready smile.
"Hi Chyna. Listen, I want to have a talk with you about your career in the WWF. Let me know when you're free."
Jess walked off the stage with Linda and Stephanie, leaving HHH, Chyna, Vince and Shane looking at her back, wondering what the hell she was planning.
When she got back to her dressing room, Jess got a very unexpected surprise. Debra and Kitty stood there, in jeans and T-shirts, their faces devoid of make-up.
"Ladies. To what do I owe this honor?"
"Well, we talked it over and we want to hear about what you have to say."
"It's not really that complicated. You guys are managers, not sluts. So you shouldn't be dressing like the Godfather's hos. Dress appropriately. In tailored suits, skirts, pants, I don't care. But if it looks trashy, I'm not letting you walk out there."
"Can we still wear short skirts?" asked Debra.
"Sure. Loose short skirts. The kind that allows you to get into the ring without having to make mini-steps. As for your tops, and this is for you Debra, I don't want to see that much of your breasts anymore. Same goes for your bras. You start wearing tank tops, shirts, T-shirts. And jackets that fit. As of now, if I see you're about to pop out of anything, you're escorted off the show."
"What about my fans?"
"They'll love Debra, not the chick with the puppies."
"Jarrett's not going to like this."
"Tell him to see me. I'll explain."
Debra and Kitty started to walk out and Debra turned to the new Commish.
"It's good you know," she said.
"What is?"
"What you're doing. Everything. You're bringing us back to what we do best. It's really nice of you. Maybe I'll start liking this job again."
"I hope so."
As Debra opened the door to leave, she came face to face with Steve Austin. The two stared at each other for a moment, and then he stepped out from the doorway, leaving her room to get out.
"What was that all about," he asked.
"Mmm, my WWF cleanup, I guess. What can I do for you Steve?"
"First of all, thanks for helping out Linda out there. I can't believe Asshole and Son didn't push Chyna out of the way to help her out."
"Well, we never pretended they were smart, did we?"
"Right. Jess... about this tournament of yours..."
"What about it?"
"I ain't sure I'll be around for the end of it..."
Jess looked at Steve and sat down on the couch, heavily.
"What the hell are you talking about?"
"Remember what HHH did to my knee at Summerslam?"
"Yeah..."
"Well, it did a whole bucket-load of damage to it. I don't think I can fight anymore."
"What do your doctors say?"
"Hell, my doctors have been telling me to get out of the ring for years and I ain't never done that."
"But now?"
"But now, even after a five minute match, my knee hurts like a bitch in hell."
"Would surgery help?"
"Not anymore than taking two months off my knee."
"Two months, huh?"
"Yeah."
"What did the doc tell you Steve?" asked Jess raising a Rock-like eyebrow.
"Doc's a dumb S.O.B."
"What did he say?"
"That maybe I should think about being a manager."
Steve spit out the words with disdain. To him, evidently, being out of wrestling altogether would be a whole lot better than to be a manager.
"And if you take the two months off?"
"Then I can get surgery and physiotherapy. Give me another month or so to get back into shape and the Rattlesnake is back."
Jess bit into her lip as she quickly counted the months til Wrestlemania.
"Just in time for Wrestlemania," she whispered.
"What?"
"Nothing. Stay here. I'll be back... by the way, does Linda know? About your knee?"
Sure."
"Good. Don't move a muscle."
Jess quickly walked out of her dressing room, almost locking it after her. She quickly walked to Linda's dressing room. Linda was there, looking over some papers.
"Hey Linda."
"Jess, beautiful work out there. You handled Jarrett like a pro."
"Thanks. Linda, we have to move quickly on this and I need you on my side."
"What is this about?"
"Steve told you about his knee right?"
At Linda's suddenly sad look, Jess immediately understood that Linda knew about Steve's knee and more. But now was not the time to press her for gossip. She had an idea and she needed Linda's back up to make it work. Once she explained her plan, Linda agreed. Both of them then went to look for Stephanie, who they found in Edge and Christian's dressing room. Christian and her were talking when Jess and Linda came in, without knocking.
"Steph," said Jess, "we need you. Christian, this shouldn't take too long."
"Okay," agreed Christian as he watched his girlfriend being hustled out of the dressing room.
"What's going on?" asked Stephanie.
"We're going to see your brother and father."
"Why?"
"We don't have time to explain. Just follow our lead, okay?"
"Whatever we're going to do, is it good?"
"It's very good," said Jess confidently, "very good."
Vince and Shane were in deep discussions with Hunter, Chyna, Billy Gunn and Shawn Michaels when Jess, Linda and Stephanie walked in without knocking.
"You," said Jess, pointing to the former DX members, "get out!"
"Where the hell do you think you are," said HBK, getting up and walking up to Jess, "we were here first and you didn't even knock."
"Fine then. Vince, Shane, we need to see you now."
"When we're done," said Shawn, moving so that he'd still be in Jess's face.
"No, now... it's an emergency."
Linda's words and the look she gave her husband and son convinced them.
They ushered their protesting friends out of the room and invited the ladies to sit. While Stephanie and Linda sat down, Jess was not quite willing to give up her position of power.
"All right, gentlemen," she said, "we have a problem. One of our top stars is going to have to leave the WWF."
"What! Who?"
"Steve Austin."
"Good riddance," said Vince, pinning his wife with a look.
"Dad," said Shane, "I know you hate the guy, and I know why, but he's an asset."
"He's a pain in the ass. And when he leaves, let me know, I'll fumigate his office."
"Vince, get down from your high horse," said Linda, "we, the WWF, can't afford to lose him. Not now."
"Listen to your wife Vince. Put your feelings aside here. Stone Cold is a tremendous asset. Think of it revenue wise. Since he's become a front runner in the WWF, think of all the money you've made, the media attention he gets, from his talk show appearances and when he's on 'Nash Bridges.' You want to lose all of that?"
Vince sat back in his chair, his fingers steepled as he thought of the numbers. The atmosphere in the rest of the room was tense. Shane looked at his mother with such disdain, such lack of respect that Linda knew, for a fact, that he knew about her and Steve. She felt ashamed yet what she shared with this man was nothing to be ashamed of. It was beautiful and it was glorious and it made her more whole as a woman. She finally returned her son's glare, reasserting her power as his mother.
Stephanie fidgeted, not knowing what to do. She liked Jess but she always felt so small in her presence. Jess, for all she'd lost, her memory, the rape, was still so supremely confident. Yet Stephanie, who'd lived on easy street for most of her life could not, for the life of her, be that intense about her life. She did not have that passion, she didn't have that lust for life.
"So, what do we have to do to keep him around," finally said Vince.
"Three months off."
"Out of the question."
"You gave the Undertaker four months Daddy," piped in Stephanie.
"That was different."
"Of course it was," said Linda, "Taker's part of your Corporate Ministry."
"Not only that," said Jess, "Taker doesn't bring in the loot Steve does. Having him gone for three months would be losing too much money, right Vince."
"I see my father's point," said Shane.
"Now, see this. Imagine how much money you'll lose if Steve stops fighting altogether and never comes back."
"Fine," said Vince. "We give him the time he needs. But I have a condition."
"What is it going to be Vince?" asked Linda, dreading his words, but knowing what they would be.
"You stop seeing him and become a wife to me once more."
"No," said Jess.
"Yes."
"Is this how low you'll stoop to get me back Vince?" asked Linda.
"This is how low I will go to make sure I am no longer embarrassed by my wife's dubious choice in companions."
"Daddy, you can't do this," said Stephanie, "Mom's happy. For the first time in..."
"Shut up Stephanie," snapped Shane, "I'm with Dad on this one. By leaving Dad for Austin, your mother's made fools of all the McMahons. We won't have that anymore."
"No. I'm sure Steve would rather quit than force Linda back into your arms Vince."
"That's not the point," said Vince, "will Linda let him destroy his career just for her... will you Linda?"
"No, I won't. I'll break things off with Steve. And I'll return to you."
Jess opened her mouth to protest but one look from Linda quieted. She had won the fight she'd come here to fight, but Linda had lost so much more. She wished she'd seen it coming. She wished she could have prevented.
"Daddy," said Stephanie, "you're not doing this."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean I know something about you that's much worse than what you know about Mom and Steve."
Vince turned to Stephanie, his eyes narrowing. In all of his life, he could not imagine what Stephanie had on him. There was nothing.
Except... There was something. Something only two, or maybe now three, people knew about. If Stephanie knew this and knew how to use this information, she could bring the WWF crashing upon him. She could end it. She could have the power to crush him, to make him into a nothing.
"I know Daddy," she said. "I know about your deal. I know why the WWF went public a few months ago. I know."
Vince felt a pain in his heart, but he knew it wasn't a heart attack. That kind of oblivion would be too easy for him right now. Oh no, he would have to suffer through this.
"I know about your deal with Ted Turner Daddy," continued Stephanie. "I know that the two of you want to merge WCW and WWF and make all the wrestlers who deserted you each in turn pay by making their former boss their new boss."
"Vince," exclaimed Linda, "no... no... that would be..."
"It would be the best coup I could ever come up with," said Vince, getting up from his chair. "Can you imagine? Nash, Hall, Hogan, Hart...
all of them, hating me so much, now having to call me Boss again. The sweet smell of success. Finally. What I deserve for all my hard work."
"That would be bringing the WWF to the WCW standards. We're in the wrestling business," reasoned Linda, "they're into 'rassling'. We're better than that."
"Are we? Think about it for a moment, about all the money we'd make."
"Is that it Vince?" asked Jess, "is it all about the money? Or is it much more about sticking it to the men and women who weren't loyal to you?"
"That's exactly what this is all about," said Vince, coming to stand in front of Jess, "see, you understand? They deserted me, they broke up the Klique, they turned their back on me after I made them, after I gave them everything they needed. Now, I have the chance to make them cower at my feet."
"What about Bret Hart?" asked Jess.
Curiosity nagged at Jess. She'd since Vince's interview on TSN, or rather, she'd seen a tape of the interview. But Vince had been so contained. Now, she had a chance, an opportunity to get a real measure of the man. She wasn't going to miss out on it.
"That idiot will learn," said Vince after a few moments of silence. "He will learn that you do not disparage us like this. He makes me look like some sort of a murderer. I didn't kill his brother Owen, you know. I didn't. It wasn't my idea. It really wasn't."
By then, Vince had put his hands on Jess's shoulders and accented each word by pressing down on them. At first, Jess had been able to withstand the pressure but now, she struggled with Vince to get his hands off her, but he wouldn't. His eyes were glazed over, as if he was looking right through her.
"But I'll show him... if he thought I screwed him when I kicked his ass out of my federation, wait until I make my comeback as his boss. I'll have him kissing my feet just so he can show his face on TV. That lousy bastard. As for Hogan and Flair, I'll show them what a man in his prime should really look like. Bunch of flabby has-beens!"
"Dad," protested Shane, trying to pull Vince away from Jess, "Dad, let her go."
"But she has to understand," said Vince, sending his son a quick glance, "with Ted Turner at my side, we'll make sports entertainment bigger than everything, it'll be bigger than the Olympics, and then, only then, will I get the respect I truly deserve. Only then, will they realise how important my work here has been."
Jess was leaning against a wall, trying to push Vince away. His hands on her shoulders hurt her so much. She felt the pain all the way down her arms, and it was starting to numb them. She had to do something fast.
The young woman was concentrating on moving past the pain when Vince grabbed her and pulled her to him.
"You understand don't you, why I have to do this?"
"..."
Jess remained quiet, she couldn't speak, she didn't know what to say.
Vince reacted to her silence by pushing her back against the wall, making her hit her head against the wall. Then, his face and everything in the room started to look fuzzy. Her legs couldn't support her anymore and she started to sink down on the floor. And Vince's hold on her shoulders didn't relent. The buzz of voices in the room became dimmer and dimmer. Jess was about to faint when Vince finally let her go.
She slumped to the ground heavily, her bottom hitting the ground hard.
Stephanie came to her side immediately, trying to make sure Jess didn't fall on the floor completely and hurt herself any more.
"Are you okay," she asked.
"Steph?"
"Yes. Did Daddy hurt you?"
"I'll be fine. Vince?"
Stephanie sent a look to her father, who Shane had finally pushed into a couch. The once vibrant owner of the WWF now sat, his eyes looking completely lost. His wife stood in front of the door, tears wetting her sad face.
"Shane," said Linda, "get a phone book."
"What for?"
"We have to find a psychiatric clinic. Some place that'll look out for your father while he recovers."
"Dad's fine," maintained Shane, crouching in front of his father, "he's just a little tired that's all."
"No Shane, God damn it! He's not just a little tired! Just like Steve needs to heal his knee, your father needs to heal his mind. And we're going to give them both a chance to do that."
"All right," said Jess, finally struggling to remain standing, "we need to make this discreet."
"You got a plan," finally asked Shane.
"As a matter of fact I do."
A good twenty minutes later, Jess came out of Vince's dressing room. Shane followed her out, cursing at her. She responded in kind the second she saw Chyna, HHH, HBK and Bad Ass, standing there, waiting to join Vince and Shane again. She stalked off in their direction and when Shane grabbed her arm, holding her back, she spun on her heel and gave him a punch that had him staggering back a few feet.
Jess then walked straight to the old DX gang and started hitting, and hitting hard. Once all four were down, she took off at a slow jog, knowing that Shane would get them all after her. She stopped running when she came close to where she knew a lot of the other wrestlers would be. Shane and her went at it, and went at it hard. She was surprised by his skill but she knew she could still take him down. However, for the purposes of this fight, they would walk away bruised but with their egos intact.
Jess suddenly felt someone pull her out of the fight. She had a ready punch but stopped when she saw it was Test.
"Stay out of this," she hissed.
"What is *this*," he asked.
"Whatever it is, stay out of it," she barked, kicking at Shane's midsection before he could hit her with a chair that HHH had handed him.
At the other end of the arena, Linda and Stephanie stood by Vince as a very discreet ambulance from the clinic came for the pickup. Within a few minutes, the rest of the McMahon clan was gone. As they watched the ambulance clear the parking, Briscoe and Patterson shook their heads in disappointment. But they couldn't dwell on this. They had to stop the fight between Shane and the new Commish.
Shane and Jess were both wondering the same thing: where the hell were Patterson and Briscoe? Everyone believed in their fight, in their mutual hatred, but their bodies were tired. Exhausted. Shane went for a spear which Jess deftly stepped away from before she sent her elbow straight into his back. She almost did a submission move but Patterson shook his head at her. So instead, she shoved Shane into the floor.
"Stay away from me, Boy Idiot," she spat out, "because next time, I'll kick your ass so bad, you'll wish it was a man you were losing to."
Jess pushed her way out of the crowd and walked to her dressing room.
Steve, who'd been watching the fight from a monitor, turned to her, a quizzical look on his face.
"What the hell was that," he asked.
"That, ya dumb son of a bitch, was me getting you a medical leave of absence."
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