Keye: No shit? I’m really sorry I’ll miss you.
Me: It’s better for H&P. Plus, Ariel just had her baby. I’m an uncle! I can’t wait to see her. Artemis is the baby’s name.
Keye: I understand. Congrats!
Me: We’ll have dinner when you come to visit the sanctuary. On me.
Keye: Promise?
Me: Cross my heart.
I was disappointed there’d be no awesome story to tell. And I really was curious about what made Sebastian tick. He’d been preternaturally cool with Deacon the night he’d arrived. He’d seemed bloodless then and sort of lonely when we talked after he took Maddie’s place, but he had a belly full of fire with the camera trained on him.
How did he burn so hot on film?
I packed up the RV. That way, as soon as Deacon gave us permission to leave, we could go.
My rig was technically a toy hauler, which made it possible to put Hades and Persephone’s large crates inside, as well as all the equipment I’d needed for the two of them. Since the large kennels belonged to the production company, Deacon told me to leave them, along with the rental van I’d used for short trips. He’d have those collected when it was convenient.
There was only the matter of lashing down the gear, rolling up the awnings, and bringing the slide outs into the body of the rig. As soon as I had that done, we’d be ready to roll.
Morrigan and I spent some of the long wait to hear from Deacon exploring the area near the RV on foot—which was what I was doing when I got Sebastian’s second text.
Keye: Have you left yet? Change of plans. Mads got poison oak, so I’m free after all.
Wilder: Poor Mads. Bad?
Keye: Bad enough to swap out tonight’s scheduled scene. Shall we try dinner after all? I’m free now.
Wilder: Sure. Need a map?
Keye: I’ll get it from Deacon. Arranging food now. See you in an hour?
Wilder: Sounds good.
I didn’t question my luck. I was grateful Sebastian and I could share a meal and that I’d still be able to leave that night, until my phone rang again. I assumed it was Sebastian with food questions. Instead, Deacon’s contact was on the screen.
“Hey, D. Did the scene with Hades and Seph look okay?”
“Are you and Sebastian Keye hooking up tonight?” He sounded angry.
“What? No. He’s stopping by with takeout.”
“I knew it. That spoiled, goddamned—”
“Whoa. Tell me what’s going on?”
“I knew he wasn’t happy when he learned we’d rescheduled the scene with Madison for tonight, I just didn’t know why. Then Mads and her friend come back from lunch with Sebastian Keye, covered in poison oak. That fucking cunt. I will personally deck his ass when I see him.”
“Wait. You think Sebastian gave a girl poison oak so he could bring me dinner? Are you high?”
“I’m not. That’s exactly the kind of underhanded thing I was told to expect from Keye. What are you thinking, getting mixed up with him? Didn’t I tell you he was trouble?”
“You said something…I don’t know. He seemed like a nice kid—”
“He’s not a nice kid. Eight years ago, that kid told some vicious lies that put a talented director on an unofficial blacklist for life. The dude killed himself. I told you he was trouble. Why didn’t you just take my word for it?”
“They say wolves are dangerous. Hell, they say veterans are dangerous,” I said angrily. “Half the time it’s baseless prejudice, and the other half it's lies. I don’t take anyone’s word. I find out for myself.”
“Not about this, you don’t. Stay away from Keye. Are you suddenly into barely legal boys?”
“Of course not. What the fuck, Deacon?”
“Craig said you’re cleared to go.”
“Okay,” I was used to Deacon blowing hot and cold but this was weird, even for him.
“Thanks for doing everything, bro. I know being here was outside your comfort zone, but everyone appreciates your hard work.”
“Thanks, Deacon. I’m glad we got a chance to see each other again.”
“You too, man. Don’t be a stranger.”
“If you’re ever in my corner of Colorado—”
“You’ll be the first person I call.”
As I disconnected the call, I wondered what to make of what Deacon had said. Was it true? Being with these people, the money they threw around, and the worship they enjoyed, I could actually imagine a spoiled teen idol shoving a girl into a poison oak plant if he wanted an excuse to play hooky and the plant happened to be there. It would be the work of a moment, and he’d probably regret it later, but I could see somebody doing it.
I just couldn’t see Sebastian doing such a thing, and because of that, I waited for him rather than leave as Deacon had told me to. I stayed because I was an old soldier, who—in the past—could have looked at a man and known how he’d behave, whether it be in battle or in a bar on leave. I hated to think my judgment was gone, along with my job and my family and my eye.
If I'd lost that, it was through neglect. The time I’d spent licking my wounds in an isolated cabin at the wolf sanctuary didn’t give me a lot of chances to practice sizing strangers up.
Did Sebastian have anything to do with Maddie Ling’s unfortunate brush with those leaves of three?
I see you little wolf.
Wolves were often blamed for things their natural instincts drove them to do. But they were often blamed for things they’d had nothing to do with.
Which category, I wondered, did Maddie Ling’s current misery fall into.
Chapter Six
Bast
Goddamn Maddie Ling and her little clique of prep school spotlight seekers. Did no one ever tell her to watch where she put things down in the woods?
I went back to my RV and stripped down to my boxer briefs. Molly wore gloves when she bagged up my clothes. I didn’t get a rash, but two cast members were blistered enough to require some quick first aid. My travel kit contained alcohol wipes, antihistamines, and a cortisone lotion that would help to control their rashes, but they’d get better treatment as soon as they saw the on-call doctor.
The end result was an angry director, a livid AD, and a messed-up shooting schedule. My scene with Maddie was out of the question for the next few days at least.
In the midst of all the excitement, I texted Stone and told him our dinner plans could be back on if he still wanted me to stop by. When he agreed, I asked Deacon Caine for a map to Stone’s rig.
Caine scowled hard. This level of disdain was nothing new. Rather than ask what it meant, I held my phone up.
“The map?”
“I’ll text it to you, but call ahead. I told him he’s done here, so he might have already taken off.”
“Will do.”
“Look, Keye, I don’t know what your angle is, but Stone Wilder is one of the finest men I know. If you even think about fucking him over, I’ll break you.”
“You’ll break me?” I’d heard that once or twice before, and I’d always wondered what it meant. “That’s pretty scary, Deacon. Can you be more specific?”
“Aw, fuck off. You don’t come on my set and play your mind games, kid.” His lips twisted. “That’s all I’m saying. I’m watching you.”