“Don’t fuck this up for me, Seb. That’s all I have to say.” With tired eyes, he gave me a tight smile and patted me hard on the back as he went to the producer’s table to defend casting me. I’d seen this before. I was on thin ice.
Anderson caught my attention and motioned for me to leave so he could do damage control. With my head hung, I exited the room.
Going outside, I was surprised to find Evie the only one lingering by the doors. Rolling my eyes, I pulled a cigarette from the case in my pocket and lit up. Taking a long drag of nicotine, I turned to her.
“You’re a liar. I know you came.”
She had her back toward me, arms clutched to her chest. “Did I? Maybe I was a good actor, even then.”
“Well then, you’re gonna be one hell of a star in this movie.”
She turned and shook her head. “No, I don’t think I will. They’re going with the first script. I’m not your Final Girl.”
We stared each other down until the doors behind me opened and Glenn came out.
“Ready? I’m starving.” He went to her, beaming as her face lit up. With a quick smirk my way, he put his hand on the small of her back, and together, they started away.
Rage and jealousy began to creep back into my veins as I watched them laughing as they walked. I wanted to storm over, spin the asshole around, and knock his teeth in, but Anderson joined me outside, and I was forced to listen to him talk about professionalism and how they still want me on the movie. My entire body shook with fury as I tried to stay focused, but all I could think about was Glenn and Evie. I needed to get the fuck out before I punched something.
“Where’s Dante?” I asked as the rest of the producers exited, nodding to us as they left.
“Must still be in there—Hey!” Anderson called to me as I stormed back inside.
Fists clenched, vision red, I went back to the room and slammed my hands down on the table where only Dante sat. He jumped as I glared at him, seething.
“Evie’s the Final Girl, or I walk.”
Chapter 8
Sebastian
The Soft Pass
“The producers want to fire you, you know that, right? They didn’t like you making threats. They think you have a big head,” Anderson said.
“They, or Glenn Thornton?” I asked, trying on the costume I’d just been handed. One thing I liked about theSimon Saysmovies was the costumes. They were nothing fancy, usually just casual clothes. ForSimon Says Six: Six Six, it was no different.
“How are the pants?” the costumer asked.
I gave him a thumbs-up and raised my arms, moving in a circle.
“Good, good. I’ll order a dozen of these. You can head over to makeup.”
“Has Dante made the call yet?” I asked as we headed to the next part of my day. Today was hair, makeup, and wardrobe. Tomorrow, I’d start stunts. I couldn’t help but notice that neither Evie nor Skye were here for any costumes. That had to be intentional.
“Not that I know of,” Anderson said, followingclose behind while glued to his phone. “You know, they were planning on going with the second script anyway, until you opened your mouth. Now we’ll be lucky if they don’t kill you off and make them have the sex scene instead.”
“I’d like to see them try.” I snickered, but inside, I was slightly worried. Had I overdone it? Would I get pulled from the franchise that had given me everything? As we went into stunts the next day, I made sure to check my attitude at the door and do as told. Not just for safety reasons, but because people were watching and reporting back. I was riding a thin line, but I wasn’t about to lose my job because I’d gotten too cocky. This franchise meant everything to me.
I apologized to Bryce and the rest of the old guard. Bryce—who’d been playing the character Simon Says since the first movie—laughed it off.
“Hey, no problem. We’ve all been there once or twice. I’ve threatened to walk away unless I got my way before. How do you think I got the bigger trailer?”
Everyone else seemed to feel the same, and by the end of the week, I felt like I’d redeemed myself by working hard and shutting up long enough to ask Dante if he’d made a decision about the script.
“I appreciate you giving it your all this week. The producers have noticed.”
I gritted my teeth. Every time someone mentioned the producers, I knew they were referring to Glenn—whowanted me off the movie just so he could fuck Evie. The very idea sent my blood boiling. I didn’t want him alone with her at all if I could help it. From what I’d heard, he was just like his father; and his father had been a bastard.
