Poppy Harmon and the Pillow Talk Killer

by Lee Hollis

  Left with no choice, Matt had finally agreed to a screen test. What happened next was mind-blowing to everybody, cast and crew, director Trent, producers Hal and Greta, Poppy, Iris, Violet, and most of all, Matt himself.

  Matt had emerged from the screen test filmed in the director’s suite at the resort convinced he had blown it and relieved that now they could move on and focus on finding this mysterious Byron character who had crashed the set and physically threatened Danika.

  But word had leaked out quickly that Matt had nailed it.

  Even the supremely skeptical Trent Dodsworth-Jones, who was still reeling from losing his leading man Chase after already filming a number of scenes with him that would need to be reshot, was stunned by Matt’s raw talent and undeniable screen presence. The scenes were hastily sent to Hal and Netflix back in Los Angeles, and it didn’t take long for word to come down that they were all willing to sign off on Matt. He was a suitable replacement for Chase. There were some rumblings that Matt was a nobody, with little experience, but the test seemed to drown out those voices, and Hal had determined that they had enough star power with Danika. They could afford a few unknowns in the cast. Plus, Matt would come cheap. Like SAG minimum cheap.

  The crew had already finished shooting the scenes at the Sundial Resort, although they would have to return later for reshoots, and moved the company to Joshua Tree National Park, startlingly picturesque with its massive rock formations, barren desert landscapes, tangled trees, and long hiking trails through the boulders of Hidden Valley.

  Trent was excited about shooting in this stark yet cinematic setting. There were some complicated sequences that would be filmed here including a desert car chase, which would enlist the services of Roy Heller and his helicopter. But today, the scene was relatively simple. Two supporting characters in the film, goofball Biff and Plain Jane Amanda, who are predictably repulsed by each other at first but eventually can’t fight their attraction. Finally unable to resist their carnal needs, the pair wind up making love behind some rocks off the beaten path. Unfortunately a tour group stumbles upon them.

  Poppy, Matt, Iris, and Violet were all on the set because Danika was scheduled to shoot a few pickup shots once the scene was finished, and although security was tight, they were in the vast desert with a number of ways to sneak around the perimeter. Danika agreed to remain in her trailer with the door locked, especially since Matt had promised to keep her company.

  “Poppy, I swear, I had nothing to do with Danika demanding they give me a screen test,” Matt promised as he loaded up some fruit into a bag at the craft services table to take to Danika.

  “I know, Matt,” Poppy said, although she couldn’t help notice the spring in his step, how excited he appeared to be over his big break.

  “It was her idea, totally!” Matt insisted.

  “Yes, she made that perfectly clear to everyone,” Poppy said.

  Matt reached in the bag, grabbed an apple, and took a big bite. “And I want you to know I have no intention of trying to parlay this into more acting roles. I am committed to Desert Flowers. Remember last year when that manager heard me sing and told me he might take me on as a client?”

  “Yes, I do,” Poppy said, nodding.

  “And I didn’t go with him. I stayed here, and look how far we’ve come.”

  Poppy refrained from commenting on the fact that shortly after that manager considered taking on Matt, he filed for bankruptcy and shut down his whole agency, but why quibble?

  “I mean, even though Danika thinks I could be the next Chris Pine or Ryan Gosling . . .” His eyes twinkled as he considered the possibilities, but then caught himself. “And maybe down the road I might get more serious about my acting goals again, who knows, but I promise you, for the foreseeable future, I am Matt Flowers, private investigator. Head of the Desert Flowers Detective Agency.”

  Poppy gave him a tight smile.

  He wasn’t blowing smoke.

  Matt was a big key to their recent success.

  But in her mind, she was the one in charge.

  This was her baby.

  And she was not going to let anyone forget that.

  With each case, she was becoming more confident in her own abilities as an investigator, and perhaps with time she would ask Matt to scale back his part as “the face” of the agency and allow her to take a more central role publicly, but she was not completely prepared for that, at least not yet.

  “Danika’s waiting, you better go,” Poppy said.

  Matt gave her a quick peck on the cheek and scurried off toward Danika’s trailer. Poppy wandered over to where they were shooting the scene with the two young actors who get caught in flagrante delicto having sex in public by the astonished tourists. Both Iris and Violet had been recruited as extras for the scene. When Trent asked them to be a part of the tour group since he felt he needed a few more people to make up the crowd of onlookers, Violet had refused, explaining she was too self-conscious to appear on camera. But Iris told her she was being silly, it’s not like she had to recite any lines, and strong-armed her into participating alongside her.

  As it turned out, Trent was duly impressed with Iris’s shock of white hair, bright red lipstick, keen fashion sense, and demonstrative confidence and commanding presence. And so when the tour group rounded the big boulder to see the young couple in each other’s arms stark naked, he decided to add the comedic line, “This was not in the brochure!”

  And he wanted Iris to deliver it.

  Iris was beyond excited.

  Poppy just shook her head with a sigh.

  The point of them being on set was to stay in the background and observe, make note of anything suspicious, and now, in addition to herself, both Matt and Iris had speaking parts in the movie.

  Trent called, “Action!”

  The young couple began to do their fake gyrating and the tour group, led by Iris, wandered around the corner and all stopped. Everyone waited for Iris to speak.

  Finally, Trent, who was sitting in his director’s chair watching his monitor, glanced over. “Iris?”

  “Yes?”

  “Say your line.”

  “I forgot it.”

  “The line is, ‘This was not in the brochure!’” Trent reminded her.

  “Yes, of course. I am sorry.”

  “No worries, let’s go again. Keep rolling. Back to one,” Trent instructed.

  The tour group disappeared back behind the boulder. Trent yelled, “Action!” and the couple began simulating sex again. The tour group appeared on cue, with Iris in front. Everyone waited expectantly, Iris opened her mouth to speak, hesitated, but then got out “This was not . . .”

  And her mind went blank.

  There was an agonizing pause.

  Violet finally whispered in her ear, “In the brochure.”

  “I know, Violet!” Iris snapped. Iris sheepishly turned toward Trent. “I will get it this time.”

  But she didn’t.

  Four more takes.

  Four more flubs.

  Finally, desperate, Trent asked Violet to say the line and much to Iris’s chagrin, Violet delivered it effortlessly and with some bite, which made the crew snicker off-camera.

  Poppy couldn’t believe it.

  Violet was a natural.

  “Cut! Moving on!” Trent declared with much relief. The scene was mercifully in the can.

  Iris was not happy. As she and Violet marched over to her, Poppy could hear Iris berating her. “I was just a little nervous! You didn’t have to steal the part right out from under me!”

  “I didn’t steal anything,” Violet protested. “I was just trying to help get the scene done.”

  Iris was not assuaged in the least. “Who knew we had an Eve Harrington amongst us?”

  Poppy was about to come to Violet’s defense when she suddenly noticed one of the extras she had heard introduce herself as Lulu to Iris and Violet earlier, over by video village, the area set up for the director and his monitors, con
ferring with Greta Van Damm. Lulu was a colorful character to be sure, bouncy, big blond hair, tiny frame but jiggling some huge assets that Poppy swore must cause the poor girl painful back problems. She had muscled her way to the front of the crowd of extras in the tour group securing a place right next to Violet, who was sure to be on camera. Surprisingly, Trent did not object to Lulu placing herself so prominently in the shot. Perhaps he was impressed with Lulu’s assets that she so proudly flaunted, and it was some kind of artistic choice.

  Poppy chuckled to herself.

  But now, what was so strange, was Lulu’s intense conversation with Greta. Poppy had worked on enough sets to know how unusual it was for an extra, probably the lowest rung on the film set totem pole, to be hobnobbing with one of the movie’s powerful producers.

  Poppy casually meandered over to video village, hoping to eavesdrop on their exchange when Greta, who still did not see Poppy approaching, reached into her bag, extracted a wad of cash, and surreptitiously handed it to Lulu, who quickly and covertly stuffed it down the front of her shirt. Lulu winked at Greta, who gave her a withering, dismissive look, and then Lulu happily bounced away to join the rest of the extras eagerly lining up at the craft services table for today’s dinner of short ribs and macaroni and cheese.

  Greta sighed, checked her watch and turned to go, then suddenly noticed Poppy staring at her. “I didn’t see your name on the call sheet for today. What are you doing here?”

  Poppy still had not copped to the fact that she was part of the Desert Flowers team, at least not to Greta or Hal yet, and apparently no one else in the know had blown her cover either. “My friends Iris and Violet were part of the scene you just shot, so I came for moral support.”

  “I see,” Greta said warily.

  “It’s been a long time since I’ve appeared in the movies, a lot has changed over the years,” Poppy remarked.

  “Yes, it’s a whole new world,” Greta sniffed, already bored with her.

  “But I never thought I’d see the day when a producer paid an extra with cash out of her own pocket.”

  Greta bristled.

  “From everything I know, most professional productions have payroll companies to handle all that,” Poppy said pretending it was simply an innocent observation.

  But Greta didn’t take it as innocent.

  Poppy was clearly prying and she didn’t appreciate it.

  “Well, luckily it’s not my job to explain to you how I run my business,” Greta snorted before storming off.

  Poppy watched her go, curious as to why Greta was suddenly so rattled and anxious to get away from her.

  Chapter 11

  Danika Delgado ran across the wind-swept desert terrain, past a towering yucca palm toward the burning car wreckage. She stopped, shielded her eyes from the blazing hot sun with her hand, and stared at the lifeless body sprawled on the ground, having been thrown from the vehicle upon impact.

  “No!” Danika wailed, as if she refused to believe her own eyes, and stumbled forward, sobbing, shrieking, until she reached the prone body and dropped down to her knees to see if he was still alive.

  It was Matt, his body twisted and apparently broken from the crash, a nasty gash down the side of his face, barely breathing. Danika scooped up his hand and held it to her heart. “Don’t you die on me! I won’t let you leave me! Not after all we’ve been through!”

  Danika squeezed his hand, but he didn’t squeeze back. She sobbed some more, unable to accept that he was gone. “No, no, no, no . . .”

  She raised his limp hand to her face, softly caressing it against her cheek, then gently kissing it.

  She closed her eyes, barely able to breathe she was so distraught, when suddenly, unexpectedly the index finger on the hand she was clutching twitched ever so slightly. Danika’s eyes popped open in surprise.

  Matt was still unconscious, most of his bruised and battered body not moving, but his fingers slowly began to wrap weakly around the palm of her hand, and then she felt a gentle squeeze.

  Danika gasped. Hope had not been lost. He was still alive. She threw herself upon him, overcome with relief, and sniffed, “Hold on, baby, help’s on the way!”

  “And . . . cut!” Trent Dodsworth-Jones called out from video village.

  Matt finally opened his eyes and smiled. “How’d I do?”

  “Joaquin Phoenix better watch his back!” Danika crowed. She leaned down and kissed him on the side of his face that hadn’t been caked with the fake bloody gash.

  Poppy and Iris stood off-camera excitedly observing all the action as Trent trotted over to his two actors and heaped praise upon them for their searing performances. Danika asked if they should do another take just for safety, but Trent assured her they had gotten what they needed for the scene and could move on. This was the second scene shot with Danika and Matt today. The first, a romantic walk along the dramatic rock formations of Joshua Tree, had indisputably proven there was a crackling chemistry between the two, which stretched well past when the cameras stopped rolling.

  Poppy had been impressed by Matt’s effortless ability to jump right in and make the role his own. After all, he had been waiting his whole life for this opportunity, and there was little chance he was going to risk blowing it now. It also helped that he had such an encouraging scene partner in Danika, who came across as quite smitten with her new co-star.

  Trent held out a hand, which Matt took, and hauled him to his feet, slapping him on the back. “You just might wind up a big star if you play your cards right, Matt.”

  “Thanks, Trent, you’re too kind,” Matt said shyly although Poppy could tell he was doing cartwheels inside his head.

  “You two take a break while we set up for the car chase scene. But we probably won’t get to it until after lunch,” Trent said.

  Danika nodded, and Trent raced back to video village to watch a playback of the scene they had just wrapped. The schedule had called for them to film the dramatic scene post–car crash in the morning while shooting the actual car chase and crash later in the day. There had also been a major change in the new script that deviated from the original movie. The characters Danika and Matt were playing, Jim (Troy Donahue) and Gayle (Connie Stevens), never became romantically involved in the 1963 version, but this more free-wheeling, gender-bending Gen Y reboot had everyone hooking up with everyone else, boys with girls, girls with girls, boys with boys. It truly was a modern take on an old classic, and so the writer paired them up, and it was paying off in dividends with the obvious sparks between Danika and Matt.

  Danika kissed Matt softly on the cheek and whispered, “I’m so proud of you. You were so good in that last scene.”

  Matt grinned and shook his head. “Come on, all I had to do was just lay there pretending to be dead. You did most of the heavy lifting.”

  As they playfully argued over who was most effective in the scene, Poppy’s phone buzzed.

  It was a text from Violet.

  Poppy read it and turned to Iris. “Wyatt’s still working on tracing the stalker’s car. He got access to some DMV records, don’t ask me how, and he’s cross-referencing the half a license plate we got with the name Byron hoping to find a match. Violet says it’s slow going, but they’re optimistic.”

  “It is good Violet is back at the office and not here trying to steal the role you are playing in the movie!” Iris sniffed, still smarting from being replaced at the last minute in her big scene.

  Poppy rolled her eyes, refusing to engage with her.

  Iris would get over her hurt feelings eventually.

  As Danika was surrounded by her people—agents, manager, stylists and social media advisors—Matt bounded over to Poppy and Iris.

  “What did you think, Iris?” Matt asked hesitantly.

  “You were . . . fine,” Iris said curtly.

  “Wow, coming from you, that means I just might win an Oscar!” Matt said, laughing.

  “Do not get too big for your britches!” Iris warned. “I do not toler
ate an overinflated ego!”

  “Yes, ma’am,” Matt promised.

  “I want to get a cream-filled donut before all those teamsters clean them out,” Iris announced, hustling off as the crew wandered toward the tent that housed craft services.

  Matt waited for her to be gone before turning to Poppy. “And you? What does the professional actress say?”

  “You were wonderful, in both scenes,” Poppy said, trying not to gush too much.

  Matt stared across the set toward Danika, who was snapping selfies with her pals. “It helps to be playing opposite someone like her.”

  Poppy noticed the sparkle in his eye as he gazed adoringly at Danika. He quickly caught himself and tried to get back to business. “Any progress tracking down the stalker?”

  “Violet and Wyatt are still working on it.”

  “If anybody can do it, the whiz kid can,” Matt said.

  Matt glanced over again at Danika, who made eye contact while chatting with her stylist and winked at him.

  “You two seem to be getting along rather well,” Poppy remarked. “People are starting to talk.”

  Matt’s guard went up. “What people? No, I’m just sticking close by her side because it’s my job.”

  Poppy wondered why he was suddenly defensive.

  She was simply stating the obvious.

  “But watching you two together, there’s certainly a chemistry . . .”

  “We’re acting, Poppy, we’re playing characters who fall in love, it’s as simple as that.”

  “Why are you downplaying this? I’ve been around long enough to know genuine attraction when I see it.”

  “Because . . .” Matt began but something got caught in his throat and he stopped.

  “It’s Heather, isn’t it?” Poppy guessed.

  Matt sighed. “Maybe. I don’t know. I literally just got dumped a few days ago so I’m not exactly eager to jump into something new. . . .”