After having lunch with my wife, Penelope and her girlfriend Gina, I was light of foot and chipper as I made my way from the elevator toward my office.  No, there was no hanky panky, but there’s a million reasons that I’m happy.  ‘Hotstepper’ blasts through my Beats earbuds.  Unable to help myself, I dance up the hall to the beat of the classic song.

”Hey Janet,” I greeted my gatekeeper as I removed my Pittsburgh Steelers ball cap, then did that smooth little hand trickery before placing it back on my head.  ”Any messages?”

Janet answers, but I hear nothing on account of the music.  Removing the buds, ”What?”

”I said Mr. Pryce is in your office,” she repeated.

”Shit,” I mumbled under my breath.

”Problem?” she asked.

”I forgot it was Thursday,” I replied as I leaned with my backside against her glass desk.  ”I’m supposed to have a progress meeting with Theo and I forgot all about it.”

”Thad, let me give you some advice,” she began as she removed her eyeglasses and set them down on her desk.  ”If you don’t get your cute little tush off my desk, Theo Pryce will be the least of your worries.”

Laughing to myself just a little, I leaned off of her desk.  ”You really mean that?”

”What?  About your uncle being the least of your worries?”

”No!  About my cute tush!

”Go to your meeting Thaddeus,” Janet says with a laugh.

Making my way through my office door, Theo Pryce stands near the glass windows looking out over the city while on his cell phone.  Ending his call, he slides his phone and then his hands into his pocket.

”You’re in a good mood today,” he says while staring out the window.  I assume he saw me in the glass reflection.

”Funny thing, Unc,” I began as I threw my backpack onto the chair by the office door.  ”I woke up today and I was still me.  Tell me what I have to be upset about.”

”You’re late,” Theo says as he turns from the window and makes his way to the guest side of my desk.

”Not the way I see it,” I said as I made my way around the desk.  ”You’re in my office so you’re on my time.”

”Maybe, but your time is my time,” Uncle Theo reminded me.

”We can sit here and measure dicks, but I gotta warn you that you have no idea what you’re up against,” I replied, causing Theo to part scoff, part laugh.

”You forgot, didn’t you?”

”Totally,” I confirmed.

”Do you know any of the numbers off hand?” he asks.  Before I could answer, my phone rings as Theo opens up a leather folder in front of him.

”One second…” I said as I put the phone to my ear.  ”Yes Babydoll?”

”LEANDER!  WHAT THE…”

Listening to her yell, I laid the phone down while she continued on with her rant.

”Is there a problem?”

”Mehhh, she probably just saw the card for Madness,” I said as Theo smiled.

”In looking at the television ratings…” he began, but I cut him off.

”First episode was up 10% over the last of Lane’s shit show,” I interrupted.  ”Up a further 12% average since.”

Theo stares at me like a deer in the headlights.

”You wanna talk about gate?  That’s down considerably because I booked the Manhattan Center for the first three shows,” I said to him unprompted.  ”Then we turned around and sold out Madison Square Garden.  Advertising revenue?  Up significantly.  Merchandising?  A little up, a little down.  We’re figuring that out.”

”We really could’ve done this over Zoom or something.”

”Yeah, probably.”

”You really know all the numbers?” he asked as he closed his folder.

I nodded my confirmation.

”Let’s talk business…”

”Alright, whatever advice you need, you got it,” I answered, causing Theo to sigh.

”Your confidence is kinda grating, do you know that?”

”Yes I do,” I answered with a smile.

”You canceled the Barclays Center and went to Greensboro instead?” Theo questioned.

To be clear, I know what he’s doing.  He’s not challenging my decisions, he’s merely gauging my ability to defend them.  It’s a tactic used in business quite often.  It’s mainly used not to find answers, but to come to the conclusion that a decision is sound and thoughtful, or rash and reckless.

”Charlotte,” I corrected him.  ”How do we know if we’re ready to ride if we don’t take off the training wheels?  One sec…”  I paused as I put my cell back to my ear.

”...and who THE FUCK is Carmen Santana!?”

”Someone gettin’ their feet wet,” I answered.  ”If you wanna be Penelope’s lackey then by all means, be her lackey.  I mean, whatever makes you happy.  But… I’mma book you to compete whenever I want.”

”...”

”Besides… when we get home, you’ll be all sore and I can rub you down with these magic hands,” I say to her confidently.

”Deal.”  Click.

”Gross.”

”Frankie says the same thing,” I laughed.  ”We need to talk about something,” I said as I flipped to X… or Twitter… whatever the hell its called now.

”About what?”

Saying nothing, I pulled up a tweet from Sean Parker and showed him.

”I don’t know,” he considered.  ”Relentless notwithstanding and keeping in line with your own vision for Madness and how you wanted it to stand on its own.  I’m not sure we should.”

”Thats fair,” I agreed.  ”But he’s gonna ask you.”

”How do you know?”

”Because I told him to,” I answered with a sly smile.

”And if I said yes… who does he face?”

”Bitch how you gonna ask a question when you already know the answer?”

”Why would I allow it?”

”Because it’s good for business,” I answered.  ”You know one half of the equation.  You know the draw that he is.  You know his abilities.  As for Sean?  I think he proved himself at Relentless, no?”

Theo sits back as he considers my argument.

”There was a reason I put that match with Kevin Mears on night three,” I continued to make my point.  ”Nights one and two, everyone looks at the main events and the title changes but night three is money night.  You and I both know that.”

”Okay,” Theo says as he stands up.  ”If Madness lets me down, it’s the last time it happens.”

”We haven’t yet.”

Theo shakes his head as he makes his exit from my office.  Standing up, I turned to face the expanse of New York City while leaning on my desk.  ”Janet, Cosmo’s,” I said into the intercom connecting me to her.  Janet enters only seconds later and quickly whips up the vodka and cranberry juice concoction before meaning on my desk beside me.

”Siri, play ‘New York’,” I said.  In just a couple seconds, ‘New York’ plays in my office as I scrunched my nose in a bit of confusion.


”What are we celebrating, Thaddeus?” she asks as we clink our glasses together.

”That Monday Night Madness is a resounding success,” I answered before taking a swallow.  ”This is the wrong song.”

”What were you trying to play?”

”Sinatra,” I answered.

”That’s ‘New York, New York’,” she informed me.  ”Two New York’s.”

”Isn’t that redundant?” I asked.  ”If you say New York, don’t people just automatically assume you mean New York City?”

”Honey, I’m from Maryland.  I have no idea.”

”Oh well,” I said to shift the subject.  ”Alicia Keys has a beautiful voice.  Wonder if she wants a baby?”

SMACK!  In the shoulder.

”I’m kidding!”


…probably.  Wait!  …  yeah, probably.