“Would you prefer a different song?” Chris’ voice was a weak, breathless plea.
Jakes was only a step away when Chris pulled free of Creighton, who was restrained by several patrons. Creighton’s strength gained him his freedom, however. Suddenly a real knife was in his hands, and then, just as suddenly, he plunged it into the chest of another patron. He started shaking and then turned and rushed headlong through the gathering crowd and into the night.
Jakes grabbed Chris’ upper arms as the singer backed up into her. Tension rippled through the muscles under her hands and just as suddenly, Hanssen turned into her shoulder, grasping lakes’ left arm with her own right hand. They both knelt to see to the murdered man. “Are you all right?” Jakes asked Chris.
“Yes. I… Thank you.” Hanssen and Jakes huddled close for a long beat. Chris reached out and checked the man’s throat for a pulse. “He’s dead.”
“What the hell happened? We were supposed to stop a murder, not cause one.”
“I’ll go check behind the bar, see if I can find any clues.”
Susan patted her back. “Go on. I’ll cover for you.” She stood and steered her “date” away from the dead man.
“Cut!” Hifer ended the scene.
Terry stepped out and took a bow to the applause of the camera crew, then looked toward Brenna and Cassidy, offering a wide smile. “Ladies, my Hyde imitaŹtion.”
Glad to have a diversion from her still-racing heart, Brenna threw a prop to Terry.
He caught it, raising it in an exultant fist. “I would like to thank the Academy,” he began.
Cassidy leaned against a console, laughing.
“One take, and damn, I’ll take it. Next scene up,” the director said. “Terry, go take a break. Everyone else…let’s belly up to the bar.”
“Does he do that often?” Kyle asked as Brenna, he, and Cassidy fell into step together on the walk over to the second soundstage.
“Nail a scene in one take? Not on your life.” Brenna laughed. “But damn, he did, didn’t he, Cass?”
The blonde nodded. “I’ll give his name to my last movie director. Terry’s got the sequel locked up.” She shook her head and took a deep breath. “I thought I was the only horror film vet.”
Brenna shook her head with appreciation. “Terry’s gotta have a few on his resume somewhere.”
They sat at a bar table and worked into the short filler scenes, bantering with Sean Durham for a few minutes. They talked about their later scenes, relaxing with sips from their stage drinks filtered water. The lighting and sound crews climbed around the set like flies on a screened porch.
The sound of flipping script pages brought their attention back to Hifer, who was going over the planned angles with the camera crew. One of the extras playing a bar patron came up. “Hey, George.” Cassidy waved him over to the empty fourth seat at their table.
He sank into the chair. Gratefully he sipped at the cup at his place. “Man, this is great.”
“The water or the job?” Uremia asked.
“Both.”
Shaking off the energy lingering from the shoot, Brenna settled back and watched the two men chat quietly. She looked over at Cassidy, whom she found lookŹing back, over the rim of her water cup. Her blue eyes really were very pale, almost clear. “How’d it go with Mitch last night?”
“I, uh, actually…didn’t call him yet. I’m going to at the dinner break.” Cassidy hesitated, then stirred her water idly with a finger as she spoke softly, “Would you consider being there?”
Brenna startled. “Me? Why?”
“Well, you were there Saturday. I…Mitch might want to ask you a few quesŹtions.”
Nodding, Brenna sipped her drink while thinking. “All right.” She wanted to ask about Cassidy’s evening with Cameron but wasn’t sure it would be appropriate, so she chose a safer topic. “How’s Ryan?”
“Doing fine. He had a little trouble going to sleep last night, but your birthday gift is his favorite toy at the moment, and he cuddled in with that.”
Brenna smiled, remembering the Wild Things monster she had picked out. “I’m glad.” She slid her hand across the tabletop and squeezed Cassidy’s.
The director stepped up to the table. “Just business,” he said. “Without the sound I could’ve shot the last five minutes. Keep it up, just put the dialogue in.”
Brenna looked up at him and nodded, withdrawing her hand from the tabletop. “Will do.” She caught Cassidy’s nod at the director out of the corner of her eye, and Kyle and George’s as well.
“All right.” He stepped back to the camera line. After a few checks on the lenses, he called, “Action.”
“We can’t let them lynch Creighton,” Jakes said. “We all have to get out of here together.”
Hanssen considered aloud, “I’m a co-worker at the club. What if I asked to see him?”
“You…you show up from the hiring agency and tell me you’re my new secretary,” Virgil said. Jakes reached over and squeezed his hand. He squeezed back. “Now, you tell me you’re not even from here.”
Dakes looked at Hanssen. “Are you certain you can do this?”
Hanssen looked back with firm determination. “We all go, or no one, isn’t that what you said? I can do this.” Their gazes held for several beats.
Susan nodded. “All right. You know when we’ll intercept the line. I expect to see you there, Lieutenant.”
“Cut!”
Brenna leaned back and smiled. Nothing like having a good rapport with the people you work with. That had been devastatingly simple.
The director looked at his watch. “Well done. That’s dinner, folks. It’s five o’clock. Keep this up and we’ll be out of here by nine.”
“Are you going to make that call?” Cassidy stopped walking, and Brenna caught up to her in the back lot near their trailers. The evening lighting bathed them each in separate pools of lamplight.
“Yes,” she replied. “Thought I’d call Gwen then and check on Ryan.”
“Missing him?”
“Yeah.”
Brenna shrugged. “Do you have to stay?”
“I have a scene over at the warehouse set after dinner.”
“I’ve got mine with Kyle.” They stepped up into Cassidy’s trailer, and the blonde offered a bottle of fruit juice. “Thanks.” Brenna sat down on the small couch. “Are you sure you want me here?”
“It won’t take long. Then I thought maybe we could talk about the camping trip.”
“All right.”
Cassidy set aside her own fruit juice. She sat at the desk, picked up the phone, and punched in her ex-husband’s number. “You know,” she said while waiting for the call to ring through, “I don’t ever remember a day going this easily.”
“Me neither,” Brenna admitted. “Nice, though.”
“Hello, Mitch. It’s Cassidy.”
Brenna saw Cassidy’s shoulders stiffen. What was it about Mitch Hyland that got his ex-wife so nervous? Offering encouragement, she reached out and squeezed Cassidy’s knee.
“Yeah,” the blonde continued. “I guess you could come for a visit. This weekend okay?” She nodded at the receiver. “That’ll work. Do you want to meet at the house?” She nodded again.
Brenna leaned back and smiled when Cassidy looked toward her. “Well, no, I don’t think we should do Disneyland.” Cassidy shook her head. “It’s too much of a day. Ryan will just get overexcited.” Another pause. “The park with Ranger would be better.” Finally the conversation was coming to an end. Cassidy said, “Yeah, see you Saturday,” and pulled the receiver away from her ear, straightening her hair and disŹconnecting the call.
“So, Saturday in the park. Good. Mitch’ll get a chance to see Ryan, and you can show him things are fine. Why didn’t you want to do Disneyland?”
“Nothing really against it, but Disneyland…well, it’s where we used to go on our dates.”
“Afraid of seduction?” Brenna asked with a half-serious questi
oning tone in her voice.
“No. Afraid of losing Ryan in a crowd again,” she admitted.
Brenna sobered. “True. I think you’ve had enough excitement in that departŹment to last a while.”
“That’s why I’m looking forward to the camping trip,” Cassidy said. “It’ll be fun, but no crowds. And I think Ryan will enjoy the outdoors.”
Brenna smiled. “We’ve done this about three times a year since coming to L.A. Just a chance to get out of the city for a weekend. When I started working with these kids, taking them on a camping trip once in winter and once in late spring was my first suggestion. Thomas is quite the mountain climber.”
“Mountain climbing? I haven’t even been camping in years. I’m looking forŹward to it.” Cassidy shifted from the chair to the couch, settling next to Brenna.
“Have you been in the mountains at all?”
“A couple of ski trips to Denver when I was in college.”
“We won’t see any snow this time out.”
“Yeah. Now when the snow hits, I like a fireplace and an endless supply of Irish coffee or mulled wine,” Cassidy mused. “How about you?”
“The same.”
They were interrupted by a knock. “Yes?” Cassidy got to her feet and opened
the door.
“Ms. Hyland, have you seen” The stagehand looked past Cassidy. “Ms. Lanigan? Mr. Hifer says you’re needed on set.”
“All right.” Brenna rose from the couch as the young man dashed away. “I’d betŹter go.”
“I’ll come watch until I get my call.”
“I thought you were going to call Gwen, check on Ryan.”
“Oh, right. I’ll be there in a minute, then.”
Brenna stopped at the door. “Don’t you dare make faces at me,” she warned.
“Would I ruin a love scene?” Cassidy grinned.
“Speaking of… What was that business singing to Virgil and me? It wasn’t in the original blocking.”
Cassidy held her door open. “I know.”
Brenna stopped on the stoop and looked up. “What is it?”
Cassidy smiled. “I like the way our characters are connecting. I thought I could extend it a bit. Do you mind?”
“The characters,” Brenna echoed. “Urn, no. That’s…that’s fine. I probably should, too.” What is going on7. She felt like something was changing too fast or in a direction she could not determine.
The lighting in the alley was very low.
Susan Jakes moved closer to Virgil and stroked a hand across his chest. He smiled, and she looked into his features. “I’ll miss you,” she said, a little bewildered.
“Are you sure you have to go?” he asked.
Cassidy watched from the side of the stage, arms crossed over her chest penŹsively. Despite knowing she had a job to do in another time and place, it was clear Susan was strongly drawn to the man the team had come to save. Damn, Cassidy thought. She felt her cheeks heat as the two actors kissed. She’s good at this.
Chapter 16
Brenna caught the phone in her trailer as it rang mid-morning. “Hello?” She tucked the receiver between her ear and shoulder as she settled on the couch and pulled off her costume boots. “Kevin?” Leaning back, she briefly pulled the phone away, studied it, and then tucked it back under her ear. “You’ve never called me on set. What’s wrong?”
“It’s official. After a very close recount, I won the election,” he said. “The party bigwigs are frantic. They’re contesting the presidential results in Florida.”
She could hear the smile in his voice. She smiled genuinely. “Congratulations. I’m glad yours came back more quickly.” He had worked hard on the campaign. She heard music in the background. “Celebrating?”
“Yes.” There was a long pause. “I miss you.”
Wriggling her toes in relief at their release from the tight confines of the boots, she massaged them distractedly, “Miss you, too,” she replied automatically.
“Could you fly out here this weekend?” he asked. “For a private celebration.”
His voice had dropped, and she felt an expectant shiver. “I have a convention appearance. … It’s in Vegas. … I know,” she added quickly. “You’re not crazy about that, but we could have some time together.”
The line between them was silent for a long time. “I fired Derek.”
The name did not ring a bell for Brenna. “Who?”
“The staffer who suggested I take advantage of your celebrity. I was stupid to listen to him.”
“Yes,” she said. She closed her eyes and felt the hot sting of tears. “You were.” The feelings of betrayal hit her hard again.
“It won’t happen again.”
“It won’t?” Brenna whispered to keep her tears from him.
“Bren, I love you. Please come to Mount Clemens.”
She covered the receiver and breathed deep and slow. Pained, she said, “No.”
He did not answer immediately. “I need to make it up to you.” His voice was quiet, regretful.
She drew a short breath. An apology? “It hurt,” she admitted. “Still does. Tom did the same thing to me. Tried to make me choose,” she told him honestly. “I need my work, but I need to be me, too.”
“I know you like the work.”
“I love the work. But I won’t be used to get you votes, or favors, or anything else.”
“I was losing in that district. I lost the demographic vote at the university in the end anyway. Made up for it in the retired”
“Kevin!” She wiped her face, aware that she was smearing the heavy makeup. “Polls aren’t everything. I have to mean more to you than a few votes.”
“You do,” he protested.
Awash in emotion, she sucked in a deep breath. “Then,” she said on a watery inhale, “how could you hurt me like that?”
She ignored the knock at her door, waiting, wanting him to answer so she could heal. The slight in Mount Clemens had, she thought, been resolved. Brought up again, she realized how, left untouched, it had only festered.
“Bren, come home. Please?”
She shook her head. “1 can’t. Not right now.” She look a deep breath, trying to collect herself. “I’m sorry. I have to go.” Taking a deeper breath as she pulled the phone away from her ear, she tapped the button and set the cordless receiver back in its cradle. Standing, she turned to find the door already open and the doorway occuŹpied. Cassidy stood there, backlit by the sun, and Brenna felt tears prick at the back of her eyes. Damn.
“Bren? Are you all right?”
Sidestepping the question, Brenna asked, “Something up on the set?” She had to close her eyes when Cassidy’s shadowed with concern. She raised her hands as the blonde came closer, taking the final step into the trailer. “No.”
Cassidy’s concern deepened. Long fingers slipped over Brenna’s wrist and pulled her hand away from her cheek. “I’m sorry about this. Gerry needs you back on set.”
Brenna nodded, trying to put her smile back in place as she moved toward the door. Cassidy’s hand caressed her shoulder. Drawn by the touch, Brenna looked up into a face that showed understanding.
“You’ll need a quick run through makeup.” Fingertips traced Brenna’s cheekŹbone.
Two new tears tracked down Brenna’s cheeks before she could turn away. Quickly she left Cassidy alone in her trailer.
Not seeing anyone in Makeup, Brenna slid in front of a mirror in the corner and repaired her face herself. Voices reached her from next door.
“Chapman still wants this?” The voice belonged to Cameron Palassis; his voice was hard.
Picking up the cake of base, Brenna was surprised to hear Victor Branch respond, “He will want to be written out if he doesn’t get more to do.”
“How are we supposed to explain this to the audience?” Cameron shot back.
“He doesn’t care. It’s just the one scene for now, anyway.”
“You damn well know he’ll want a wh
ole script on the subject later.”
“Demographics might like it. They liked Raycreek and Jakes for quite a while.”
“Until their off-screen breakup soured the onscreen chemistry. Chapman doesn’t get along with anyone now, especially Cassidy.”
Brenna was shocked. Will is demanding a script change or he’ll walk? God, we’re only a few episodes from the whole thing being over anyway. And he wants to be writŹten in with Cassidy?
Brenna admitted to herself that she had not been an advocate of focusing so much attention on Chris Hanssen at first, but after a year and after all the plot lines which had seen them thrown together, Jakes had a stake in this, too. From Branch’s words, though, it didn’t sound like Chapman wanted more professional interaction between his character and the lieutenant. They had specifically mentioned Jakes and Raycreek’s affair. She sighed. And how badly that went. She frowned. Is Will angling for a romance with Cassidy?
Palassis was right. Other than the odd scene here and there, Chapman’s Mark Raycreek barely spoke to Cassidy’s Chris Hanssen. There were very few grounds to support a closer relationship.
The two men moved away from where she sat. She finished reapplying her makeup and went out to her soundstagc, her mind still reeling with questions. What
scene does Will want changed? she wondered. Then she wondered how, or even if, she could or should stop it.
Terry Brown and Will Chapman were conferring at a cafeteria table when Brenna arrived for her own dinner break. “Mind if I join you?” she asked, looking between the two as she held her tray.
Terry gestured to the seat across from him. “Of course.” Will’s gaze was polite as she settled.
“Terry,” she started easily, hoping to feel Chapman out. “How’s the shooting?”
“Coming along.”
She looked at Will, who had turned to his meal. Uneasy, she wondered what to say. An imp prompted her to joke. “How’s the base line coming, Lieutenant?” she asked with a light smile.
“Just a few minor rewrites to the history books, Commander,” he replied in kind, after a hesitation. Brenna nodded. “Something on your mind?” he asked.
Turning Point Page 14
