“Whoa! Andy, I told you I can work with her. It’s not a problem. Please don’t let our personal differences sway you.”
He shakes his head. “Your relationship with Sophia Thorne has nothing to do with me.”
Confused, I look from Andy to Colton and see something pass between them.
“Care to fill me in?” I ask as I push off from the car, feeling slightly angry.
“I have never, in my entire career, pressured an actor into working for me in an unethical way, and I will not be accused of it now. I’m not a predator.”
My anger fades as Andy’s words sink in.
“What the fuck?” asks Colton.
“That woman tried to force herself on me, and when I wouldn’t comply, she then said she’d slander me with accusations of sexual advances. It’s a good thing you and she are no longer dating, or this whole production would be without me as a director.”
Holding up both hands in surrender, I say, “She’s been under a lot of stress. Things came to a head last night. Andy, she’s not herself.”
“Kris, the problem is I think this is who she’s been all along. It’s not the first time she’s tried something like this. George Hunt hinted that Sophia could be a viper.”
Colton bursts out laughing. “Isn’t George gay?”
George Hunt is a director with a swag of Oscars under his belt, but he is very gay.
One side of Andy’s mouth goes up in a half-smile. “Yes, he is. I’m just lucky that I had the mic on, and the whole production crew heard Sophia’s lies.”
“Jesus,” I mutter.
“Indeed. Did you like Loretta Reed? She was who I originally wanted for the part, but you were seeing Sophia, and the studio thought she was a better fit. I should have gone with my gut.”
Placing my hands on my hips, I look down and mentally go through Loretta’s movies. She’s an up and coming and would be a good fit.
“We read together a while back for Pascal Lorenzo’s film. She was easy to work with.”
“You haven’t fucked her, have you?” asks Andy.
His candor throws me for a moment. “No, I have not.”
“Good, let’s keep it that way.” Andy looks around. “We’re done for today. See you in a month, providing Loretta is available. I’ll get her details, and we can have a sit-down.” Andy holds out his hand. “You did well today.”
Taking his outstretched hand, I shake it and nod, then I do the same with Colton.
“Thanks for today, man. It was fun.”
“The real work will begin when production begins. Keep fit, take care of yourself, and keep away from vipers.”
I chuckle and head for the trailer. Once inside, I find Sophia there, looking distraught.
“Hey.”
“What do you want, Sophia?”
“He’s booting me off the film because… because I—”
“Because you made a pass at him. What the fuck were you thinking? He’s been married to Dottie for ages.”
“I was looking to trade up,” states Sophia matter-of-factly.
“Well, how’s that looking for you now?”
Standing, Sophia straightens her blouse and looks at me from underneath her long lashes. “I made a mistake. Is there a way to fix this and us?”
Shocked to my core, I finally see her for what she is, a soulless entity who will use anyone to get what she wants.
“No, Sophia, you’ve fucked yourself on this one. Now, get out.”
Her mouth drops open, then she straightens her shoulders and pushes past me out of the trailer. One thing is for sure, Sophia is a survivor. This will only be a minor setback for her.
***
The drive back to Boothbay is much more pleasant without Sophia nagging at me. I feel lighter knowing she’s out of my life for good. I hadn’t realized how much I didn’t want to work with her was affecting me. I park at the bottom of Athena’s home and jog up the path. Her phone has been off all day, and I need to hear her voice. When I get to her door, I try to open it, but it’s locked, so I knock. There’s no response.
“Athena!” I yell out as I knock again.
Nothing.
The gate to her walled-in garden is also locked with a padlock, which is weird since Athena never locks anything. Unperturbed, I drive to her parents’ house, but they aren’t home either. TB and Ashlea are off on their honeymoon, so I can’t check with them where she is. The only person I can think to ask where Athena is, is Todd at the police station.
As I open the door, the woman at reception is someone I went to school with. She was a couple of years ahead of me, and I smile at her.
“Julia?”
“Oh my God, Kris!” she shrieks.
Julia runs around the desk, through the gate, and hugs me. “It’s so good to see you.”
“Ah, thanks.” She has that crazy look in her eye that some fans have, so I disentangle myself from her and ask, “Is Todd here?”
“Todd?”
“Yeah, he’s a deputy here, right?”
“Right.” Julia throws her arms in the air and nods profusely. “Yes, yes, he is. Let me just see if he’s in.”
With a huge grin, she walks backward through the gate. The police station still looks the way it did when I was a kid—same gray walls, same setup. Not that I was dragged in here very often, but as kids, we were always in trouble for bonfires on the beach. The sheriff didn’t mind too much when it wasn’t peak tourist season, but when it was, he got a bit cantankerous. He didn’t want any of the tourists getting hurt and affecting the tourist industry. What he could never understand is the tourists liked hanging with the townies to see if they could score with us.
Todd appears at the far end of the building. I wave, but he walks toward me, hand on his gun, face masked in anger.
“Todd?”
“Don’t you Todd me! Have you come back to gloat?”
I’m bewildered.
Shaking my head. “Todd, I don’t know what your issue is, but I’m looking for Athena.”
“You’re looking for Athena?” Todd raises his voice.
“Yes, Todd,” I reply forcefully.
He cocks his head to the side and frowns. “Wait, you didn’t leave?”
“No, I didn’t leave. Where the fuck is Athena?”
My stomach turns to stone as I dread what he’s about to say.
“Athena is gone. She thought you left with Sophia Thorne this morning. So, she left…”
I shake my head and try to understand what he’s saying.
“What the fuck? Where did she go?”
“New York.”
I rock back on my heels. The one place she’s afraid of, and that’s where she goes? It doesn’t make sense. “Why there?”
“Her publisher is there. They’ve been trying to get her to go for a book signing and to discuss a deal with a studio for one of her books.”
“Why did she leave?”
Todd moves his hand off his gun. “She thought you left with Sophia as in left, left if you get my meaning.”
Scrubbing a hand over my face, I let out a frustrated growl. “I didn’t tell her. I didn’t tell her we were filming at Wiscasset Speedway. Things got heated between us last night, and I had to be out there early this morning. This explains why she isn’t answering her fucking phone.”