Beck
Beck was beginning to feel like he was in a soap opera.
Symphony’s dark eyes narrowed as she scanned the room. “This is problematic, isn’t it?” she said, her attention landing on her son. Her lip curled, but Beck couldn’t tell if the look was anger or disgust or merely annoyance at the complication. “Why are you here?”
Adi tried to speak, but no words came out.
“It wasyou?” said Sierra. “You killed my sister? But— You didn’t even know her!”
“Of course I knew her,” Symphony snapped. “I met her on set that first week of filming. I took her under my wing. Taught her how to make the camera love her. I mentored that bitch!”
Bewildered, Beck met Carter’s gaze.
But then—he realized. All those times Alicia had disappeared when Louis had been on set. She had been meeting withSymphony.
“She had potential. We could have done great things together,” Symphony growled. “And then she stabbed me in the back. It was bad enough when Ranielle told me they’d decided to give the host gig to Alicia instead—that’s Hollywood for you, isn’t it? Always passing over the talented, experienced actress for the flavor of the week. But when I saw Alicia getting out of Louis’s car that night, I understood what was really going on. She slept her way intomyjob! I was supposed to be host!Me!”
Fitzy faced her. “You said they were bringing you on as producer!”
“Details,” said Symphony, flicking a hand. “Ranielle promised the host position to me first, before Hitflix started getting hot and bothered over my little protégé. I knew that once Alicia was out of the picture, they’d see reason. I’m the star here. I deserve this.”
“Oh my god, that’s why she tried to steal my contract,” Adi said, so quietly, Beck suspected he was talking to himself. “She didn’t want to be producer. She’s been gunning for host since season four.”
Fitzy’s expression twisted with fury. “You told me that once you were co-producer, you’d make sure my job was safe.”
“Yes, well. I lied,” Symphony said, so flippant it was like she didn’t even realize Fitzy was holding a gun. “Besides, you were getting fired one way or another. That’s on Ranielle, not me.”
“I helped you!” said Fitzy. “I did everything you asked. Who had to get her frozen-ass carcass from the villas? Drive her halfway across town? Do you think it was easy loading her up on that cart, arranging her in that coffin—”
“I didn’t tell you to take her to the studio,” snapped Symphony. “I said todisposeof the body, not make a spectacle of it.”
“I had to send a message! No one screws me over and gets away with it. Not Ranielle, and sure as hell not you. You swore I’d keep my job if I took care of thatcatastrophicmess you made for us.”
“It wasn’t like I planned to kill her.” Her eyes flashed. “But she’d been plotting against me. When I realized how she’d betrayed me . . . Well. Things escalated quickly.” Her anger faded and she shrugged, like the difference between talking to Alicia and murdering her was no big deal.
Fitzy’s nostrils flared. The gun wavered, and for a moment it seemed he might shoother, but then he swung it around toward Beck and the others. “If I’m screwed, I’m taking you with me. So how do you propose we deal with this?”
Beck pressed back against the wall, tugging Carter closer to him.
“You killed her,” whispered Sierra. Beck wondered if she had heard anything else of the conversation. “Over a . . . a job. A pathetic hosting job on a reality competition. That was worth her life?”
Symphony rounded on her. “Thisismy life! My career! Do you know what I had to endure to get my ex involved with this show? The hoops I had to jump through to get that offer from Ranielle?”
Beck could see Sierra’s fury burbling up, reaching the surface—
“She! Was! My!Sister!”
Sierra raised the wooden stake. Fitzy lifted the gun. But then Vera was screaming, a guttural warrior’s cry, as she shoved Sierra out of the way and grabbed the stake from her hand.
Vera rushed—not at Symphony but at Fitzy.
Surprised, he jerked the gun out of her reach and sidestepped. Vera crashed into the stone wall. If she was hurt, she showed no sign of it, immediately spinning around and stabbing the stake into the back of his shoulder.
He let out a roar of pain. The gun went off, the sound deafening in the small room. Carter screamed and ducked. Beck crouched beside her, his arms around her shoulders. Symphony was yelling and Fitzy was shouting and the gun fired again—
Someone yanked on his arm. Beck dared to look up.
“Come on!” Adi shouted, shoving him toward the wall.
