“Thing is, if we’re both competing for Janice’s distro deal, I don’t know if I can keep this offer on the table,” Ralf went on.
“You want us to withdraw from the pitch,” RJ said.
“Like you said, we need to make our mark,” Ralf said calmly. “I want both our movies to get made and this is a way to ensure that.”
“I’d like to see this pitch.”
“You interested?”
“Maybe you need a name like mine to attract other talent,” RJ suggested. “Producer capacity.”
“I’m interested, let’s keep talking,” Ralf said. But then his phone rang, two chirps. “Oh.” He drew out the sound with knowing chuckle. I knew he was going to find Vivian in somedark corner and I wanted to hurl. “I need to … take care of something. We good?”
“Ah, sure.” I could hear the slapping of backs from an effusive bro-hug, and I shrank behind the pitcher plant display as the two men scuttled past me and left. When the hothouse door shut behind them, I let out a whoosh of breath.Wow.Ralf was silver-tongued, no doubt. He’d had RJ in the palm of his hand, dangling exactly what the desperate director wanted in front of his nose and making it look effortless. With work he’d stolen from me. There was no way I could let this happen and I had just two minutes before I had to find Sol and get her into her car for the airport.
I rushed out of the hothouse doors. RJ was feet away, reading something on his phone.
“Can I talk to you?” I asked urgently.
He looked at me in surprise. “Oh – yes. Everything okay?”
My mouth went dry. Did I admit I’d eavesdropped on him and Ralf? It didn’t exactly make me look good. “Ralf stole something of mine,” I said.
RJ frowned. “He did?”
“A document,” I said. “I created a proposal for an adaptation of a novel. Budget, schedule … everything. An adaptation of the novel,Twin Roses.”
RJ went very still. “Go on.”
“It’s come to my attention that Ralf stole it. Packaged it as his own so he could pitch it to Janice.” I held my breath, waiting.
“Stole it how?”
“From my laptop,” I said. “He hacked into it.”
“Why?” RJ said.
“Because it’s a good pitch,” I said. “Because I got Sol Rodrigues showing interest. Because he needed something to make his mark at VLV and he saw his chance.” He must havedecided to take the leap and quit after the encounter with Sol at the photocall.
RJ sighed, shoved his phone in his pocket. “And what, precisely, do you want me to do about that?”
My heart sank. “It’s wrong,” I said. “What he did was wrong.”
“Lucie, I’m not debating that,” RJ said. “But it’s done. He’s already pitched it and I’m not sure we can undo that.”
“I know,” I said impatiently. “But it’s mine.”
“The book is yours?” RJ asked. “What, you think you’re the only person to come up with the idea to adapt it? I’d be willing to bet there are multiple creatives thinking the same thing. Ralf just happened to get in there first.” He swiped a glass of champagne from a passing waiter. “These things happen in business.”
“No, no,” I said desperately. “These things do not just ‘happen in business’; they happen when someone gets too ambitious for their own good.”
“Or ambitious enough to make shit happen.” RJ took a swig. “Look, I’m sorry, but you can’t claim an idea. The cat’s out of the bag, so to speak, and Ralf’s the one running with it.”
I wanted to scream. “So, what, you really wouldn’t care if someone stole from you? If someone else used your idea to-—”
“Of course, you know, I get it, it sucks.” RJ attempted a sympathetic smile. “But perhaps we let this be a lesson. There is nothing new under the sun. So what if Ralf was inspired by something you came up with? He’s actually making it happen now because he can, and you can’t.” Someone called his name from across the party, and he waved. “Lucie, you’re a bright spark, with talent in droves. But you have a lot to learn. I wish you well.”
And with that, he strolled off, head high, leaving me shaking. He didn’t even care – RJ had displayed not one shredof outrage about the injustice of Ralf’s actions. From a man who demanded total loyalty from his employees, he certainly didn’t know how to show it himself. I was glad I hadn’t tried to convince him to claim ownership of the pitch; it was clear RJ wouldn’t have done what was morally right just to help me.
