While her parents had been happy to see her sister Patricia marry, an Italian actor probably didn’t meet their idea of a suitable son-in-law. Their parents were eagerly anticipating grandchildren, yet after eight years of marriage, Patricia and her husband had yet to have children. They were also struggling financially, as were all the local ranchers. Everyone was praying for an end to the drought.
Ruby hurried up the steps to a white building with tall columns and a wide front porch that looked more like a grand mansion in Pasadena. Drawing a deep breath, she opened the door.
“Good morning,” Ruby said to the receptionist seated at a desk inside. “I’m here to see Royce Blackstone to audition for Diary of a Pioneer Woman.” She clutched her purse and tried to steady her breathing as an odd wave of nausea threatened to overtake her. Anxiety had never affected her quite like this. She swallowed hard against the tickling sensation.
“Please have a seat.” The receptionist handed her a short script and motioned toward a row of chairs filled with other young women her age.
Ruby hadn’t realized this would be such a large casting call. She took a seat and studied the script, trying to suppress her nausea.
After a few minutes, the uneasy feeling overtook her. She hurried to the reception desk. “Where’s the ladies’ room?”
“Down the hall.” The receptionist pointed toward a door.
Ruby rushed toward it, her heels clicking on the hardwood floor like typewriter keys. She burst through the door and raced toward one of the stalls.
Just in time.
Thankfully, the ladies’ room was empty. After being sick, she made her way to a couch in the mirrored makeup area. She was so dizzy. The room spun around her like a tilt-a-whirl at the county fair.
For the next hour, she alternated between the couch and the nearest bathroom stall. She couldn’t remember when she had been so sick. She’d always had a hardy constitution.
Collapsed on the sofa again, she brushed tears from her cheeks. The worst of this was that she might miss the audition. She waited as other women cycled through the ladies’ room. A few asked if she needed any help.
“I’ll be okay soon,” Ruby told them, but from the worried looks on the women’s faces, she could tell they doubted her self-prognosis. She closed her eyes and tried to will away the feeling.
Ruby wasn’t sure how much time had passed when the receptionist bustled into the ladies’ room. “You’re the last one on the list. They’re waiting for you inside.”
“I’m not sure I can do this,” Ruby said.
The receptionist pressed her lips together. “You have to. Mr. Wyler sent a letter of recommendation for you. Mr. Blackstone is in there with the producer and the casting director. They’re waiting for you, so pull yourself together.”
Ruby groaned.
The woman turned on a faucet and dampened a paper towel. “Sit up and put this on your forehead. If you can’t make the audition, they’re going to give that part to another girl. And Mr. Blackstone and Mr. Wyler are friends, so you’d better get in there. I won’t be blamed for not sending you in.”
“I’m trying.” Ruby pressed the cold towel to her face. With a couple of minutes, the spinning room slowed, and she pushed herself up from the couch.
Ruby forced herself to ignore the roiling in her stomach, fighting through it with every bit of grit she had. Chin up. “Tell them I’m on my way.”
“I can get you five, maybe ten minutes, but that’s it.” The woman hurried out.
Ruby staggered to the sink to splash more cold water on her face. When she looked up into the mirror, she nearly gagged at her reflection. Her face was pale, and her carefully coiffed hair was in disarray. She thought about what David, the wardrobe assistant in Italy, would have said about her appearance. But there was nothing to be done about it. No makeup artist or hairstylist could disguise the way she felt.
The only thing Ruby could rely on to get this part was her acting ability. She breathed in, summoning her strength. If she didn’t get this part because of a silly stomach ailment and her parents lost their ranch, she would never forgive herself. Niccolò needed her, too.
And she needed him.
Ruby smoothed her hair and pushed her shoulders back. Walking out of the ladies’ room, she called out, “I’m ready.”
The receptionist pointed toward a closed door. “Go in, and good luck.”
Ruby stepped inside the audition room. The room was bare except for a long table that anchored one side. Two men and a woman were seated at the table. Each had a stack of papers and a notepad in front of them.
“Come in,” the woman said, consulting her notepad and a headshot that Ruby’s agent must have sent. “You’re Ruby Raines, correct?”
Ruby swallowed a wave of nausea. “Yes, I am. Very nice to meet you.”
“I’m Meg Wallace, the casting director for Diary of a Pioneer Woman,” the woman said. “We understand that you’ve been in Italy working with William Wyler.”
“It was an excellent experience,” Ruby managed to say.
Meg went on to introduce Mr. Blackstone and the producer. “We’re also going to record this on film.” She made a note on the pad in front of her.
Ruby wished she could protest. The thought of being immortalized on film when she looked like this was disturbing. She would have to make the best of it.
Just then, the lights snapped on, and a camera operator hurried in to take his position behind a large movie camera.
Ruby stood in the middle of the room, collecting her thoughts and breathing to quell the persistent sour feeling in her stomach. She couldn’t think about what would happen if she became sick here. That wasn’t an option. She had to get this part.
Ruby blinked, grounding herself in the scene.
Meg put down her pen. “State your name and begin when you’re ready, please.”
The director gave a signal to start.
Transforming herself into the character she was to play, Ruby rose and threw her head back as if she were looking at another actor. She gritted her teeth and cradled her arms in front of her as if she were clutching an infant.
“If you’ve come ‘round these parts lookin’ for a handout, you won’t find it here,” Ruby said, letting her Texan accent come out. “My baby’s real sick, and with this drought, I’m nearly out of food.”
Mr. Blackstone read the part of the other actor in a flat monotone voice. Other actors might have found it challenging to maintain a high emotional level against that kind of reading, but not Ruby. She drew on her anger and charged ahead with the scene, filling the room with her character’s desperation. This character and situation she knew all too well.
With a burst of emotion, Ruby finished the scene and held it.
No one said anything for several seconds. Ruby could feel her stomach churning and prayed the growling wasn’t loud enough to be caught on film.
At last, the director said, “That’s enough.”
“We have everything we need.” Meg stood up. “You may go. We’ll be in touch with your agent soon.”
Ruby thanked them and walked out, waiting until she had shut the door to race down the hall to the ladies’ room once more. As she passed the receptionist, the woman gave her a thumbs-up sign.