Chapter 22: Admit Mistakes and Stand Your Ground

Unfortunately, Kate's hopes were about to be dashed.

After leaving the hospital, Ed first made a trip to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in New York's West Side to check the surveillance footage from Lincoln Center's streets.

Sadly, the department head told him that the cameras on that street had been damaged a long time ago, and due to lack of funding, they hadn't been replaced. The department was sorry for the inconvenience.

"Fuck~"

Ed cursed the transportation official's mother under his breath and left the office, frustrated.

Without any surveillance video, there were no witnesses from that day other than Lima and Kate. Finding anyone else was nearly impossible.

But what use was it if only Lima and Kate testified that Luca had saved someone?

This was a tricky situation! Ed sighed, got into his car, and headed back to Ford Models, hoping to leverage the company's connections to solve this crisis.

Luca had great potential, and Ed wasn't ready to give up on him just yet.

Ford Models was near Fifth Avenue, only a few hundred meters from the Empire State Building.

Currently, the company's general manager and chief agent was Katie Ford, the youngest daughter of the company's founder, Eileen Ford. Katie was a highly professional woman, sometimes stern in her demeanor.

Ed adjusted his suit in front of the mirror and knocked on the chief agent's office door.

"Come in!"

Ed opened the door and walked inside.

"Ed, what have you been up to lately? Haven't seen you come by to report in a while."

Katie Ford, in her fifties, wore silver-framed glasses and looked up from a pile of documents.

Ed was an old-timer at the company and was relatively familiar with the general manager. He shrugged, "I've found a very promising new talent."

"Oh? It wouldn't happen to be Luca, would it?"

Katie pulled out a newspaper and tossed it onto the table.

Ed glanced at it and silently cursed, "Shit~."

Katie was usually too busy to read anything other than The New York Times or the latest fashion magazines. She never paid attention to smaller tabloids like The New Yorker, so how had this one landed on her desk today?

"Andrew brought it over. He thought I should take a look."

Katie said directly.

Ed's face darkened even more. Andrew Fagan was his longtime rival.

They had been friends when they were younger and had both fallen for the same woman, Nina.

In the end, Ed, being African-American, won Nina Syst over and married her, which caused their friendship to sour, turning them into enemies.

At work, Andrew frequently set traps and competed for resources. In his personal life, Andrew would go out of his way to inform Nina whenever Ed got close to any women at the company.

What a jerk!

Ed helplessly shrugged, "Katie, it's not what it looks like. Luca isn't using. His back injury flared up."

He sat down across from Katie's desk and began to recount Luca's history—how he had been a former Brazilian national soccer player, a genius on the field, before a car accident derailed his career and led him into a two-year slump.

Ed sighed at Luca's misfortunes, then explained the Armani fashion show, Luca's dedication, how he saved someone before the show began, and how, despite the pain, he delivered a stunning performance that impressed the likes of Frank Martin.

Katie listened quietly, hands folded. Once Ed finished, she said, "So, our hero has been misunderstood?"

"Yes!" 

Ed breathed a sigh of relief. "Luca saved someone, which aggravated his old spinal injury. That's why he was in so much pain and had to be taken to the hospital. He wasn't using drugs."

"Then why did you come to me?"

Katie took off her glasses and wiped them. "The newspaper got it wrong. You could take them to court. Do you need me to recommend some good lawyers?"

Ed shook his head. "Katie, suing a newspaper takes too long. That's not the priority right now. Armani is in the process of selecting models for their upcoming campaign. Joseph Frank was really impressed with Luca and even called me. But because of this false report, Mr. Frank has started doubting Luca."

"You want me to call Joseph and explain?"

"Katie, this is a huge opportunity. It'd be a shame to miss it."

Ed flashed a toothy grin, trying to charm her.

Katie chuckled, "It won't help, Ed. So what if Luca saved someone? As far as public opinion is concerned, he's a problematic model. Armani has plenty of options. Why would they choose someone with a potential issue?"

Ed frowned. Katie was right. Armani, an international brand, had no shortage of models—especially male ones.

In the fashion world, male models were the lowest rung, the cheapest, and faced the toughest competition. Movie stars, athletes, or even just a handsome guy could land a modeling gig. Armani wasn't going to wait for a new model to clear his name.

Katie shook her head and picked up the phone.

"Katie, what are you…"

"Hello, Joseph? It's Katie."

Katie got through to Joseph Frank and explained the situation with Luca.

Just as she predicted, Joseph was sympathetic to Luca's circumstances but wasn't willing to risk giving him the campaign. He politely expressed interest in working with Luca in the future, should the opportunity arise.

Katie hung up the phone. "Ed, do you know what the real problem is?" Without waiting for Ed to answer, she softly said, "It's not Luca, it's not the newspaper—it's you."

"Me?"

"Yes. You're Luca's agent. All this hype around him was your doing. Don't you think you rushed things?"

Ed paused, then suddenly understood. It was indeed his mistake.

After Luca's stunning performance at the fashion show, the fashion world had taken notice.

He and Kate had quickly launched a PR campaign, hoping to use the opportunity to turn Luca into a star model.

But the fashion industry was full of competition and limited resources. The rise of a new star inevitably encroached on others' territory, causing tensions.

Someone, perhaps a competitor, had likely spread the false rumors in the tabloids, aiming to tarnish Luca's reputation before he could gain traction. By the time the truth came out, Luca would have already been forgotten.

"Katie, you're right. I was too impatient."

Ed acknowledged his mistake sincerely.

Katie smiled, lit a Lady's cigarette, and asked, "Ed, I heard you were planning to get your new talent into the entertainment industry. Was it Luca?"

"Yes."

"Then why are you investing so much into fashion if you've chosen the entertainment path?"

"I…"

Ed realized he had been short-sighted.

After seeing Luca's impressive performance on the runway, he had instinctively fallen back into his old habits of creating hype, like when he had groomed top models in the past. But even if Luca became a top model, what good would that do?

In Hollywood, a top model was just another extra with good looks.

Male models had low status; their fame rarely extended beyond the fashion world. Hollywood even held a certain disdain for male models.

So, using the strategy of becoming a famous model first before transitioning to acting didn't make sense.

"I only planned to make some quick money with Luca on the side. I didn't expect things to get so complicated."

Ed sighed and scratched his head.

Katie chuckled, took another puff from her cigarette, and pulled a business card out of her drawer.

"A producer gave me this at the company's last cocktail party. Their crew might need a handsome guy. Give it a try."

"Katie, thank you!"

Katie waved it off and resumed her cigarette.

"Goodbye, Katie!"

Ed pocketed the card and left the office.

"Hey, Ed! I heard Mr. Frank was impressed with your new talent, and he's about to become the face of Armani's new collection, isn't he?"

As soon as Ed stepped out, he ran into his "old friend" Andrew—a short, chubby man in his forties who always wore a suit and tie, looking like a gentleman but, in reality, was far from it.

Ed ignored him and strode toward his office.

"Don't walk away, Ed."

Andrew hurriedly followed with his short legs, calling after him.

"Ed, I heard you used a lot of resources to promote this new talent. You must be making a fortune this time, huh? Nina's pulling in two or three grand a month. Your income must have surpassed hers by now, right? Haha! Ed, now that you're back in the game as a top agent, when will you take me out for drinks?"

Bam!

Ed entered his office and slammed the door.

Andrew rubbed his nose, startled.

"Ha! Ed, your model is finished. No brand will touch him now. All those resources you invested? Down the drain. I bet you're feeling pretty disappointed, huh?"

"Get lost!!"

"Hahaha~"

(End of Chapter)