“I’m switching to video,” warned the photog. “I know the carpet’s winding down, but I’d love a quick clip about why you’re excited for the movie.”
A speaking role! Maybe Juliet would end up onAccess Hollywood—maybe her family would see it in Mississippi. “Scout Sage wrote half the songs on theInfinite Heartssoundtrack,” she gushed, “so you know it’s going to be good.”
Luca stepped closer to Juliet, entering the shot. “What we’re really excited about is Scout’s support for a rally my organization is hosting to say no to Gabriel Knox for president.”
Juliet’s cheeks flamed. She hadn’t thought to mention the rally—truthfully, she hadn’t known whether talking politics on the red carpet was allowed. Eager to correct her mistake, she added, “That’s right—Knox will be terrible for women, and the working class, andanyone who cares about the planet.” The words rolled off her tongue, lifted from the Green Lions website.
“Exactly.” Luca’s expression was urgent. “Everyone should come show up next Thursday, in front of the Los Angeles City Hall. Who knows?” Luca winked. “You might even see Scout there.”
“Wow.” The photographer’s eyes were wide as he shouldered his camera. “I had no idea Scout was getting into the election. Thanks for the scoop. Expect to see this air.”
He hurried away, revealing Miranda and Cybele standing a foot behind him in stunning floor-length gowns, frozen as wax figurines. Miranda’s mouth was open. Cybele looked furious.
“What the hell was that?” The model stalked toward Luca. “You can’t commit Scout to your protest. She doesn’t even know you.”
“Juliet?” Miranda’s eyes flashed with betrayal. She didn’t seem to notice that Juliet was wearing one of her dresses, that she’d spent her hard-earned money buying it as a gesture of love. “We have your back and this is how you repay us?”
For a moment, Juliet couldn’t breathe. Luckily Luca stepped in, meeting Cybele’s gaze with her own. “I’m sure Scout will support the rally once we get a chance to talk. And if she doesn’t, what’s the harm? Maybe some young women show up looking for her and become politically engaged instead.”
“The harm is, you’re using us.” Cybele’s gaze flicked to Juliet. “And you’re letting her.”
“Oh, come on.” Luca was using the tone she normally reserved for people like Knox. She lifted an elegant hand to the disassembled red carpet. “What, you want to protect the sanctity of this self-congratulatory circle jerk? There are people dying because they can’t afford medical care, and you’re all walking around in ten-thousand-dollar dresses. It’s immoral. People are starving, and inside there’s a spread of hors d’oeuvres they’re about to throw untouched into the trash.”
“Don’t worry about us,” Cybele said. “We do our part. Isn’t that right, Juliet?”
Juliet knew Cybele was reminding her of the debt she owed them. But she wasn’t grateful, she was angry. “I won’t apologize for wanting to do something that matters,” she said stiffly. “I thought you guyscared about people. Does the care end at your circle of friends?” She pointed at the busy street, at the tourists in cringey jean shorts and Crocs, women who would never be invited to a movie premiere, who didn’t have trust funds or interesting bone structure. “What about them?”
Miranda lifted her chin higher. “I think you should leave.”
It was like being punched in the gut. But Juliet did as she asked, following Luca out past the tall metal gates that cordoned off the premiere, back to the other side of the proverbial velvet rope.
Luca said nothing as they pushed their way through foot traffic. Hollywood Boulevard was full of spectacles, Judy Garland and Clark Gable impersonators walking around in costume, guitarists strumming for change, a man wearing a sign scribbled with Bible verses. It wasn’t until they came upon a wig store that Luca stopped, turned to Juliet, and said, “You have a braver soul than your friends give you credit for.”
The praise was so unexpected that Juliet felt the tears she’d been keeping at bay well in her eyes. She wiped them furiously. “You think?”
“Come here.” Luca yanked her into the alley next to the shop. “Let me level with you. I only came to the premiere because I’m worried our protest isn’t going to make enough noise to kneecap Knox. If we don’t have enough people, it will fizzle.”
Juliet nodded gravely. “I get it.”
Luca lowered her voice, gripping Juliet’s wrist. “I’m telling you, you have no idea the things Knox is capable of. We can’t leave this election to chance. We need a guarantee.”
“I’ve seen things.” The words tumbled out of Juliet. “On shoots, I mean. When I was younger…” She was rambling, trying to show Luca that she might be only eighteen, and naive, but she understood what was at stake. Luca squeezed her wrist tighter in response.
“We have an idea, Juliet. It’s a bit radical. And we need your help.”
Chapter 34Isabel, the Assistant
PRESENT DAY
When Scout didn’t show up at the movie premiere, I went searching. Maybe it was intuition that steered my car to the Serpent Room, or some sort of sisterly telepathy—or hell, maybe I’d simply exhausted every other option. But when I pulled into the parking lot behind the club and saw Scout sitting on the hood of her convertible—a little red one whose license plate we’d managed to shield from reporters, her silly Barbie car—my stomach dropped. I’d found her, but it was obvious she was still lost.
No one but me would’ve recognized her. She was getting good at disguises. She wore a black bandanna tied around her face, the top of it meeting her mirrored sunglasses, and a black baseball cap pulled low over her head. With the intensely still way she stared at the Serpent Room, it looked like she was planning to rob it. That, or burn the place down.
I killed my engine and walked over. “There are a lot of people looking for you, you know.”
She said nothing. Stayed unmoving, her arms slung over her knees.
I leaned against her bumper. “I know Haley’s made your schedule overwhelming trying to twist this scandal in your favor, but the premiere—”
