The Grey Zone (Black Noir / The Boys Fan Fic)

Ch 8 Scrolling and trolling

Shame and embarrassment filled her head as she walked away from the set. How could she be so ignorant? Chrissy was practically begging her not to go into Phil's dressing room for a reason. She could have simply spent more time gaining Chrissy's trust. She would have got the truth out of her eventually.

Leaving the set, the security guard from her early confrontation made a sarcastic comment. "I see the cleansing was an early success."

"Something like that," she murmured, waving him off in an attempt to be polite.

It was a car crash of a morning. First a run-in with Vought security, then a confrontation with Vought's press team, then the icing on the cake; walking in on her client with his pants down. This wasn't her usual standard as a private investigator.

Was it just the morning's events that had thrown her off her A-game, or was it the fact she was in too deep around Vought officials? She'd waited so long for an opportunity to get her foot in the door yet 3-days into her contract things were going poorly. No leads. No surveillance. Broken rapport with both Phil & Chrissy.

She was messing up her chance.

In an attempt to make amends, she chose not to wallow in her embarrassment and keep busy with the case. She swiped through her phone and arranged an apology bouquet to be sent to the Make-Up Artist trailer on the set for Chrissy. The beauty of New York meant that a same-day courier delivery could be arranged in a matter of moments. Private investigation work was always about using the relationships of those around you and Jess had work to do getting back into everyone's good books.

Phil would be a bigger challenge. Despite being only 2 days into the investigation, she would need to find a lead. The only thing that could sway Phil's opinion of her - and The Agency she represented - would be to make progress on the investigation.

She was determined, but her ego still stung from getting things so wrong on set.

As she hopped into a cab back to her apartment, the driver groaned. "It's going to be a long one. There's traffic."

"It's OK. I tip well, take your time."

"Sure." He didn't sound certain but this was New York, obviously there would be traffic. It gave Jess time to do a little online recon from her phone. If she couldn't be right there with Phil Madison to scope out his surroundings, she could at least snoop from afar.

First, she hit the gossip blogs. They were always full of Vought related scandals - who was dating who and who attended which premier. However, it was rare that Phil gained a mention unless it was related directly to a supe. Staring back at her from her phone screen, a photo of Phil and Homelander at the premier for 'Homelander the Brave' filled her view. It was a harsh reminder that Phil, the client she had just pissed off, could be the key to getting access to Homelander.

She needed to find a lead. Fast.

Digging a little deeper she discovered a photo archive of Vought red carpet events. Phil was often pictured surrounded by a beautiful circle of female models. Jess had to wonder if this lady's man act was to cover up the fact he preferred the men on set. Could it be possible that one of these women had got the wrong impression?

Of course, the gossip blogs loved the glitz and the glamour but the tone shifted when she began scrolling through film forums.

They were full of harsh critiques of Phil Madison's work. Whilst Jess had expected to find some comments of this nature, some of them felt particularly acidic.

USER: AnnWantsAHalo: "He thinks he's Vought's Golden Boy."

USER: Hot4Homelander: "I dunno I really liked the film he made with The Deep.