Page 46 of Scripted for Love and Poison
“You know I am,” Sol said.
It looked like they were understanding each other, and Luke realized once again how much Sol helped him whenever she got involved in a case, interpreting the entertainment world for him. He still didn’t want her getting entangled, nonetheless.
“Oh, whatever!” Claudia finally gave up, and her manner relaxed. She made Sol and Luke scooch over and sat next to them. “I knew I should have said no, but can you blame me? There’s constant chatter about layoffs, and I can’t be sure I’ll have a job next week! So I decided to make myself a bit more of a comfortable mattress to fall back on, just in case. I watchedHaughty Horizons, realized that it was a slog that was only going to attract a very annoying kind of straight man who thinks himself intellectual, and I advised on showing it to exactly that type of journalist. I even made a list for them.”
“I’m sure it wasn’t a very difficult list to make,” Sol said, a smile tugging at her lips.
“It wasn’t. And yes, Simon I-think-Sofia-Coppola’s-movies-are-just-for-women Smith was at the top of it.”
“Would you mind sharing the list with us?” Luke asked the editor.
“If you promise discretion, and only because I can’t really say no to someone as pretty as you,” Claudia said.
“We won’t say a word, but Claudia, perhaps you should talk to Victor Lago. He’s drunk and doesn’t seem as devoted to secrecy as we are,” Sol said.
“Ugh!” Claudia sighed. “Let me go talk to that fucking haughty know-it-all.”
“Were you lucky? Did you get Ryan Gosling?” asked Luke before Claudia left. He was genuinely curious.
“I did. And not even Victor Lago is going to ruin my buzz,” said Claudia with the most triumphant of smiles.
“You think she told us the truth?” Luke asked as Claudia strutted back to the lobby of the Roosevelt in search of Victor Lago.
“I think if she was testy, it could be because she knows this information makes her vulnerable with her employer,” Sol said. “Does she make sense as the poisoner/killer?”
“I can’t see a motive,” Luke admitted. “But this case keeps getting more and more complicated. I don’t like it when things don’t make sense.”
“I would agree with you about the lack of motive, but I need to tell you something that may add to the pile of things that keep complicating your case—and perhaps throw some light about that motive.” Why did it sound like things were about to go sideways? “I haven’t told you this before because, honestly, we haven’t had any time alone to talk. The occasion didn’t arise. So don’t get evenmoremad at me.”
“I’m not mad,” he said, but he kind of sounded like he was.
“The day I was talking to Jason and Emily about Simon, when I left, Emily gave me Simon’s manuscript,” Sol said.
She has the book written by one of the people whose disappearance I’m investigating, and she only thinks about telling me thatnow!
“I see,” he said, and he thought he was doing an excellent job at not losing his cool and sounding nonexasperated, which he was anything but. “And?”
“What do you meanand?!” It was clear that if he was making an effort not to escalate that conversation and remain not mad with her, she was not extending him the same courtesy.
“I’m sorry. Is there anything in the book?” he asked, trying to sound as civil as possible, given the circumstances.
“I’ve just skimmed through it, but Simon talks about Claudia in the book, and her less ethical habits.”
“Like doing consulting jobs for studios even if she shouldn’t?”
“Yes. If that gets out, not only could she lose her job, but her reputation as an editor would be ruined,” Sol explained.
Claudia Hopkins was suddenly not only an extremely obnoxious editor with the ability of always importuning Luke, she had also found herself with motive for Simon Smith’s disappearance.
“Anything else you may want to share?” Luke asked.
“I haven’t had time to finish it yet!”
“Of course,” he said, and he sounded furious, even if he didn’t want to.
“I guess there went our two full hours of not being at each other’s throats.”
“Why don’t we make it three hours of truce while we drive to Los Feliz, and we can go back to rowing once we’re back in the discomfort of our old friend, the inflatable mattress,” Luke said. This time he did sound as conciliatory as he was attempting to be.
