“Bottom line, you want it canceled? That’s pretty funny.”

“Funny?”

“Yeah. Funny. You sure you don’t want a drink?”

“I did ask for water.”

“You did. That’s the truth.” Getz pointed a forefinger at her as if it were the barrel of a gun and grinned. Then he picked up his vodka and downed it in two long swallows. “Okay, let’s get some facts on the table. A small housekeeping detail first. You really need to check your contract, sweetheart, so you’ll have a clearer understanding of the basics—like who owns what, who makes what decisions, who gets to cancel things. Et cetera. But this is no time to get bogged down in legalities. We have bigger issues to talk about. Let me tell you a few things about RAM that—”

“Are you telling me you won’t cancel it?”

“Please. Let me give you some context here. Without context we can’t make good decisions. Please. Allow me to finish. I was starting to say there are a few things about RAM you may not know. Such as, we have more number-one shows running than any other cable or broadcast network. We have the highest—”

“I don’t care.”

“Please. Allow me to speak. These are facts you may not be aware of. We have the highest total audience figures in the business. Every year the numbers get better. Our parent company is the largest media company in the world, and we are their most profitable division. Next year we’ll be even more profitable.”

“I don’t see the relevance of this.”

“Please. Listen. We understand programming. We understand audiences. Bottom line? You want to talk bottom line? Bottom line is, we know what we’re doing and we do it better than anyone. You had a program idea. We’re turning that idea into gold. Media alchemy. That’s what we do. Turn ideas into gold. You understand?”

Kim leaned forward, her voice rising. “What I understand is that people have gotten killed because of this program.”

“How many people?”

“What?”

“Do you know how many people die on this planet every day? How many millions?”

Kim stared at him, momentarily speechless.

Gurney took the opportunity to ask casually, “Will the new murders boost your ratings?”

Getz flashed another grin. “You want the truth? The ratings will shoot through the roof. We’ll run news specials, Second Amendment debates, maybe even a spin-off series. Remember the project I offered you? In the Absence of Justice—a hard-nosed review of unsolved cases? That could be a hot one. That’s still very much on the table, Detective. The Orphans of Murder could have real legs. A franchise. Media alchemy.”

Kim’s hands were balled into fists. “That’s so … so ugly.”

“You know what it is, sweetheart? It’s human nature.”

Her eyes blazed. “It sounds to me like ugliness and greed.”

“Right. Like I said. Human nature.”