Whelon (Dragons of Preor #12) - Celia Kyle
Chapter One
Sasha’s mother shouted about everything.
Ev-ery-thing.
From complaining about the weather and Sasha’s split-ends to Sasha’s amount of airtime—it was never ending. Which was why, when she heard her mother’s voice rise, Sasha didn’t bother paying attention to what the woman said. More than likely, it would be the same crap as always. What was the point of stressing about her momma’s drama-llama now? Pretty sure that her mother was on the phone, Sasha figured she was shouting about wanting more airtime and money. The managers at the local television station where Sasha worked were terrified of her mother.
Which meant she’d probably get her way. As always.
Sasha went over the schedule one of the production assistants had given her, and a quick scan revealed it would be a decent week—two morning spots and three in the afternoon. She was on almost every day and that was an improvement over the last few weeks. Ever since her mother had gotten Sasha’s contract changed to get them more money per appearance, the number of spots had decreased.
Based on her mother’s continued raised voice, the number of TV slots might be going up even further soon.
She sighed and tossed the schedule aside, unsure how to feel about her mom’s interference and what it’d mean for her career.
It had taken Sasha a while to get onto mainstream TV. Initially, she had worked with her mother on a YouTube channel and presented her thoughts on fashion, makeup, and light news. The audience responded well, and she’d ended up with a couple million followers in the first month. Sasha had been content with that level of success. She’d loved her little show, Sasha Says.
Her mother’s voice rose again, almost shrill, and Sasha glanced in her mother’s direction. Jenna was almost toe-to-toe with the station manager, arms folded and eyes hard. The woman knew enough about TV production by now to see that there wasn’t enough room for a regular light news reporter. Her bit was popular, but it wasn’t considered mainstream.
Sasha sighed and returned her attention to the schedule quickly, not wanting to catch her mother’s eye or draw her attention. The woman was in attack mode and would lash out at anything with the viciousness of a rabid Teacup Yorkie. Rawr.
The thought made Sasha smile, but she quickly smothered the expression before her mom caught sight of her hint of happiness. God forbid anyone be happy while Jenna Dane raged.
Things had been simpler when she was “just” a YouTube star. Once the channel took off, Sasha’s mother contacted magazines and talk shows, setting up interviews and appearances. Even though there had only been a few in the beginning, her popularity grew until people begged the big stations to book her. Sasha had a lighthearted, honest manner that appealed to people in today’s age of lies and misinformation.
The media storm soon transformed into small parts on sitcoms and commercials. Companies bid for her attention to get her endorsement on their products. For whatever reason, Sasha Dane was considered trustworthy by the public.
Of course, things couldn’t remain the same forever.
One day she’d been covering a charity benefit in the park. It had been a fabulous event with rides, junk food stalls, and a hand-crafted market. It’d been for disabled children and kids had been everywhere having their faces painted and screaming in joy as they frolicked and played.
That’s when three Preor dragons arrived.
Some promotions representative had invited them, and apparently they wanted to see the charity work up close. When the three huge dragons blocked out the sun on their flyover, Sasha had been so shocked she’d dropped her microphone and stared into the sky in horror.
“Now, now!” her mother had hissed from her place behind the camera. Sasha nodded firmly and picked up her mic, staring into the camera with a stern expression on her face.
While Sasha recovered from her shock and horror, every single child at the fair took off to the opposite side of the park to greet the dragons. That’s when she’d apologized to her audience for the interruption and used the situation to push her—her mother’s—views.
The Preor hypnotized people. They had humans under a spell. Their presence on Earth would destroy the human race. Just look how the humans flocked to the aliens while abandoning the charity fair.
Of course, her mother had been thrilled by Sasha’s performance, but her popularity split dramatically. A lot of people loved the Preor and wouldn’t support Sasha if she was against the aliens. Other factions rose behind her