Page 55 of Hollywood Games
‘Zoe,’ she spat. ‘I should have known she wouldn’t keep her trap shut.’
‘Zoeknows? Since when?’
Now his mother was taken aback. ‘She didn’t tell you?’ Rory shook his head. ‘Then who did?’ she demanded, indignant with rage.
‘His Holiness,’ he replied bitterly, turning for the door.
Barbara stood. ‘Where are you going?’
Rory looked at his mother, calm settling over him like a soothing balm. The solution was clear. ‘I’m going to kill Brad.’
She crossed the room and grabbed his arm. ‘No, Rory. It’s not his fault. Stop!’ She was dragged to the door by the unstoppable force of her son, with only one goal in his sights. Rory took the key from inside the front door, pushed his mother back and locked her in. He walked away down the corridor, her shouts slipping off him as the red mist descended.
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26
Back at the cabin, with no phone signal, the cast and crew were blissfully unaware Hurricane Rory was on its way. They had already filmed establishing shots of the location with Kirsten looking winsome at the end of the pier and Brad rowing in. Now Kirsten was back in her trailer by the side of the main road, hidden beneath a mountain of fleece and fake fur, whilst the final scene of the morning was set up – the moment Brad stepped off the boat into the arms of his conveniently not-dead wife. They were beginning with a wide shot and the camera was several metres away down the bank. The only people left on the dock were Brad and Zoe, and she stamped her feet to keep warm as he leapt about, his fingers forming a frame in front of him, envisioning his masterpiece. He was in ecstasy, talking Zoe through each action and reaction, moving her like a shop mannequin for the best angle. That being, of course, her back to the camera and him facing it.
‘Let’s block this baby!’ yelled Brad into his radio. The film crew readied to set the shot.
No one noticed Rory running down the track from the road towards them.
Brad got out of the boat with bold, overacting steps. He stopped in front of Zoe, making sure he was facing the camera. He put on an Oscar-winning look of anguished love, then clasped her head, and crushed his lips onto hers. Zoe’s arms flung out to the side in shock. She was being kissed by The World’s Sexiest Man (four years in a row), according toCosmopolitanmagazine, who also happened to be the lover of her boyfriend’s mum, and she was not enjoying the experience one bit. As she brought her hands to his chest to push him off, she heard a war cry of vengeance. Brad broke the kiss and glanced up, his face turning white and his eyes bulging as he beheld the fifth horseman of the apocalypse – the one who was thrown out for being too violent – thundering towards him.
Brad scooted behind Zoe, pushing her in front as Rory ran down the length of the pier, the wooden boards shuddering under his feet. From his expression, Zoe realised he must have found out about Barbara. Panic shot through her.
‘Get out of my way!’ snarled Rory. ‘I’m going to fucking kill him.’
Zoe had no doubt in her mind Rory was not only capable of dispatching Brad, but was also relishing the prospect. She stood her ground, her arms spread, a human shield trying to protect Brad from his rage. Rory effortlessly lifted her into the air. She thrashed in his arms, yelling at him to stop but he carried her back to the bank and deposited her on the ground. By the time she’d picked herself up, he was running back to Brad, who waved wildly at the film crew running along the shoreline to help.
Zoe ran after him but was too late. Rory gripped Brad’s belt buckle in one hand, his throat in the other, and with a bellow, lifted him straight up in the air, over his head, and threw him into the freezing waters of the loch. ‘If you touch her again, I’ll kill you!’ he roared. He turned back to Zoe, and her heart sank. Under the anger and rage, she saw his anguish. He looked utterly lost. As if the world had started turning backwards and no one had thought to tell him. She held out her hand and he took it, wrapping his arm around her and pushing their way through the crowd of people jostling to be the one to rescue Brad. Zoe let him lead her up the slope towards the track.
‘I’m sorry,’ he muttered into her hair. ‘I think I’ve finally lost the plot.’
Zoe hugged him tightly. ‘I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you. I thought it best if he just left and you never knew.’
‘That would have been my preferred option.’
‘Rory,’ Zoe began tentatively. She felt him stiffen as they walked along the track towards the main road. ‘You should really go back and apologise.’
Rory shook his head. ‘I don’t trust myself right now. And I’ve got to get back to the castle.’
‘Why?’
‘I locked Mum in the flat.’
She giggled and pressed her face into his chest. ‘Oh god, she’s going to be steaming.’
‘Not as much as I was. I just can’t believe it. Her, and…Him.’
They reached the road and stood in each other’s arms, leaning against Rory’s truck. He had abandoned it at an angle behind Kirsten’s trailer, the driver door hanging open.
Zoe stroked her hand through his hair. ‘When was the last time you saw your mum this happy?’
He looked away from her, frowning. Zoe waited patiently for a reply.
‘Never,’ he finally replied. ‘But he’s incapable of fidelity. And he’s such a…’ He trailed off. ‘I don’t want her to get hurt.’
