Page 35 of Hollywood Games
Zoe dropped her clammy palm. ‘Ah well, nothing to be done about that I’m afraid, just my genes.’
Kirsten ran her eyes slowly up and down Zoe’s body, stopping at her bottom.
Ignoring her, Zoe turned to His Holiness. He reached out long, spindly fingers and held her hand in both of his, lifting her palm and inspecting it. Zoe could feel his hot breath on her skin.
He looked up, his eyes full of dark sexual promise. ‘It is as I have foreseen,’ he intoned in an accent that sounded Russian by way of New York.
‘Er, what?’ asked Zoe, the hair rising on the back of her neck as her subconscious mind screamed at her to flee. He had no time to explain himself, as Rory barged forward and took his hands from hers, shaking them vigorously.
‘Lord Kinloch at your service. You must be Vlad.’ Vlad’s lips turned white and his eyes bulged as Rory attempted to crush his bones to dust.
Kirsten let out a gasp. ‘His Holiness! You must refer to him as His Holiness!’
‘Apologies,’ Rory replied, continuing to pump Vlad’s arm up and down, the rings around his beard jumping as the power shook his body. ‘You must be His Holiness.’
Vlad may have been in pain but he stared back in silent challenge at Rory. It was going to be a handshake to the death. Kirsten leapt between them and they disengaged. She took Rory’s hand and looked up at him.
‘I’m Kirsten,’ she simpered, proffering her hand to his then, when he took it, pushing it towards his mouth.
Rory hesitated, then kissed her knuckles. ‘Delighted to meet you, Miss Bjorkstrom.’
Kirsten giggled; her blue eyes bright with interest. ‘Oh, you must call me Kirsten.’
Rory dropped her hand and turned to greet her assistant. ‘I’m Lord Kinloch.’
The girl with the scrunchie in her hair seemed shocked she’d even been noticed and held out her hand which Rory kissed. ‘I’m Shauna,’ she whispered.
‘Lovely to meet you, Shauna. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to come and find me. Now, let me introduce you to Zoe.’ Shauna blushed bright red and turned gratefully to Zoe, who gave her a smile of reassurance.
‘Shall we go in and I’ll show you to your rooms?’ said Zoe, taking two of the bigger bags from the ground and starting for the castle. Kirsten’s contribution to proceedings was to carry her handbag, and Vlad took nothing. Rory and Shauna carried the rest, with Rory effortlessly taking the bulk of the load.
Progress through the castle was slow, as every few feet Vlad would stop and look around, his arms outstretched, his long fingers waving as if clearing invisible cobwebs from their path. As he did this, Kirsten would huddle closer to him, clutching at his coat for support, and glancing around fearfully. They were only halfway up the stairs when he stopped again, this time crouching down on his knees and chanting into a dusty corner.
Zoe looked at Shauna questioningly and she whispered to her and Rory, ‘He’s speaking with the castle spirits.’
‘Well, it’s time the conversation ended,’ said Rory brusquely, pushing past and knocking him over. ‘Kirsten, we’ll go to your room first.’ He continued walking up the stairs, Zoe following him, a giggle threatening to spill out. In her head she was already planning to repeat Vlad’s performance in the cabin later. Rory reached the top of the stairs, stomped along the corridor and deposited the bags he was carrying with a thump onto the floor outside a room. He took out a key, unlocked the door, and marched straight to the window, remaining there as everyone else entered.
‘It’s how I pictured it in my dreams,’ said Kirsten. Temporarily distracted from her fears of the netherworld, she removed the hood of her coat and joined Rory beside the window. ‘I can feel the connection to my past lives,’ she said, looking up at him. Rory gave her the key, and she closed her hand around his. At the noise of a lighter, he turned to see Vlad setting fire to a large bunch of leaves.
‘What the hell are you doing?’ he asked, moving towards him. Kirsten grabbed onto Rory’s arm to hold him back, as Vlad blew on the leaves, putting the fire out but leaving the end glowing, smoke spilling out into the room.
‘It’s sage! His Holiness has to sanctify the room!’ squeaked Kirsten, holding on to Rory with as much effectiveness as a gnat trying to hold back an elephant. Rory shook her off and walked around the bed. Vlad turned away from them and chanted, the smudge stick waving high in the air. Rory pulled his arm down and took it, just as the smoke alarm went off. Zoe ran to open the windows, and Rory threw the stick onto the cobbles of the courtyard. He then went to the door, opening and closing it to create a draft. After thirty seconds of noise, the alarm went off. The silence left behind was more deafening.
‘The only fires I want to see in my castle are ones in the grate over there,’ said Rory with icy calmness, pointing to the fireplace. ‘In addition, guests are mandated to attend a fire safety briefing. Do I make myself clear?’
Shauna and Kirsten nodded obediently and Vlad inclined his head, looking at Rory with a cool assessing eye.
Rory walked to the door. ‘Your holiness, I will show you to your room, Shauna, please follow Zoe.’ He walked out without another word.
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19
The next morning Rory went to the production office for a daily briefing and Zoe went to the hair and make-up trailer so Kirsten could be made to look like her. Opening the door and stepping in, she was hit with a wall of heat, coffee fumes and hairspray. Everyone was down to T-shirts, except Kirsten who was still wrapped in her puffa coat, nursing a mug of black coffee. Her wig had arrived, and a mass of curly red hair dwarfed her petite face. She frowned into the mirror.
‘Morning, Kirsten, how did you sleep?’ Zoe asked.
‘It was so cold. I’m used to LA weather.’ She shivered.
