14
Spencer was right about the breeder—it only took us ten minutes to get here from the house and it happens to also be on the way to where I’m shooting all week.
“Are you ready for this?”
Arte glances at me and puts her front paws up on the passenger arm rest, so she can see out the window. I put the car in park, but decide to just watch her for a few seconds because I want to savor ever moment I get to spend with her before we’re apart for the rest of the day.
I’m really hoping that Arte isn’t mad at me for leaving her… and that she’ll understand that I’ll come back for her at the end of the day. That’s the best thing about her coming here, I think, because it’s a place she should be comfortable and there might even be some of her siblings still here.
“Are you ready to go in?”
Arte doesn’t look at me, but she starts to wag her tiny tail.
“OK… let’s do this.”
I put her on leash, get out of the car and walk around to open her door. She jumps out of the car and I manage to grab her leash before she can run away.
“Hey… slow down, little one.”
She starts pulling me toward the house and I walk faster to prevent her collar from digging into her neck. I have a feeling she’ll forget all about me once she’s inside, which will be good for her. Me though… I’m not so sure.
I raise my hand to knock on the door, but it opens before I get the chance. There’s a woman in her mid-forties standing in front of me with a smile on her face.
“You must be Amy.”
“Sheki?”
“Yes.”
We shake hands and she steps aside to allow me in.
“I’d love to… but I really should get going.”
“Of course… right. You have my phone number, if you need anything. What time did you say you’ll be back to pick her up?”
“I’m not sure exactly… hopefully before five. Sorry.”
“It’s no problem… we live here… so whatever time is perfect.”
“Thanks… I appreciate it.”
I lean down and scratch Arte between her ears. I stand up again and hand her leash to Sheki.
“Have a good day,” I say.
“We will.”
I wave to Arte and start walking back toward my car. I glance over my shoulder and see them in the doorway. Arte is watching me, but she’s not making a sound. It’s taking everything I have not to cry right now and I feel so silly.
By the time I get to my car and look at the house the door is closed, thankfully. I take a deep breath and start the car.
“Get it together, Amy… she’s a dog and she’s in a good place… she’ll be fine for a few hours.”
I pull away from the house and drive toward the address I’ve entered into my GPS for where we’re shooting this week. It’s supposed to be a house where our characters thought they would find their family members, so it should be a pretty intense and climactic scene.
My thoughts keep drifting back to Arte… her cute little face, her ears, those precious brown eyes. I already know today is going to fly by because I’m going to be thinking about her constantly.
The parking lot is buzzing when I pull in and get out of my car. I notice a fire truck on the far side of the parking lot and it triggers the rest of the scene we’re about to shoot—I forgot about the part where they are going to burn down the house with us inside of it. Well… not us, but our characters. Harriet made it very clear, from the beginning of the shoot, that we wouldn’t have to do that scene… which is a relief. The idea of being inside a burning building is not pleasant and certainly not something I’d ever want to experience unless it was a matter of life and death.
I see Harriet, the director, walking toward the building that will be consumed by fire later in the day. I lock my car and head over to where she’s now standing.
“Hey,” I say, as I stop next to her.
She looks up from the copy of the script she was reading.
“Amy… how are you?”
“Good… you?”
“I’m fine… just making sure everything is ready for today. We only get one shot at this, so everything has to be perfect.”
“Yeah… that makes sense.”
I shudder at the thought of something going wrong and the shot not turning out exactly how Harriet imagined—it’s not like she can just burn the house down a second time.
“You have your lines memorized?” Harriet asks.
“Yes.”
“Good. I need to go check with the fire department… you should get over to wardrobe.”
“OK.”
I smile as she looks down at the script and walks toward the fire truck. She looks totally stressed and I hope that today goes off without a single hitch. I walk toward the wardrobe trailer. There’s no answer when I knock on the door, so I just pull it open.
Jarvis almost falls right into me as he tries to push the door open. He manages to grab the handrail to steady himself, but I put my hands up just in case he falls into me.
“Sorry… I didn’t realize anyone was in here.”
He just glares at me and waits for me to move out of the way. I raise an eyebrow, but do as he wishes.
“Are you mad at me because of the whole thing with Rose?” I ask, as he walks away.
Jarvis doesn’t acknowledge that I’m even speaking to him. Wonderful. Today should be extra fun. Ugh.
“Cut!”
I shake my head as we finish the shot. Sweat is pouring down my face as I walk out of the house and onto the deck. I wipe it away with the back of my hand as I head toward the craft services table to get a bottle of water.
According to today’s shooting schedule I should be done, but I feel like I should hang around just in case. Plus, I kind of want to see the house burn.
I grab a bottle of water, open it and proceed to drink almost the entire thing in one go. Jarvis starts walking in my direction, so I turn and head toward my trailer—he’s already made it abundantly clear that he doesn’t want to talk to me. Other than when we’re filming, he refuses to look at me or utter a single word in my direction.
The scene of the house burning isn’t supposed to be shot for about ten minutes, so I decide to head to my trailer to cool down and check my phone. I grab my phone, turn on the air and sit down on the couch. There aren’t any new messages on my phone, but I see the last one I sent to Rose and I decide to text her.
Hey, look… I wanted to do this over the phone… but I’m starting to realize you’re mad at me… and don’t want to talk to me. I get it and you were right… about me understanding how you felt about Jarvis. My judgment was clouded and I didn’t even realize what you were trying to say. I told Spencer about our talk… and he’s the one that pointed it out to me. Anyway, I really just wanted to say that I’m sorry and that I really hope you can forgive me. You’ve been a good friend and I want nothing more than for you to be happy. I hope that Jarvis is good to you… otherwise I’ll kick his butt. Take care and I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me.
There’s a knock on my door before I can hit send.
“Yeah?”
“It’s Harriet.”
I set my phone down on the couch and get up to open the door.
“What’s up?”
She shakes her head and runs her hand through her hair.
“Nina… your stunt double… she didn’t show up.”
“Oh… did something happen?”
“No. I don’t know. She’s not answering her phone. She was supposed to be here an hour ago… but now I’m starting to think she’s not going to show up at all.”
“Dang that sucks. What are you going to do?”
“I’m not sure. It took weeks to get this whole thing set up… the permits, the fire department. If we don’t shoot it today… it’s going to be very expensive and the studio isn’t going to be pleased.”
I think I’m starting to see where this is going.
“Do you want me to do the scene?” I ask.
Harriet takes a deep breath and looks into my eyes.
“No… but thank you for offering. I’ll figure something else out.”
She looks over at the house and starts to walk away.
“Harriet?”
She stops and turns.
“Yes?”
“Why did you come to tell me that… if you… if you didn’t want me to do the scene?”
She sighs and shakes her head as she walks back over to me.
“My plan was… it was… to ask you to do the scene.”
“And what changed your mind?”
“I don’t know. I started thinking about the shot… how dangerous it is… how young you are… your husband… all of it. The last thing I want is to put you in real danger. You’ve been… amazing on this shoot. This movie would have fallen apart if there was a lesser young woman in your shoes. I’ll always be grateful for how hard you’ve worked… but asking you to do this… it’s too much.”
I walk up to her and put my arms around her. She sighs and hugs me back.
“Thanks,” Harriet says, “I needed that.”
“I could tell.”
She smiles and lets out a small laugh. It’s one of the few moments when I’ve actually seen her happy during our time together. She’s usually just so stressed and focused on the shoot.
“Thank you for your kind words,” I say. “It means a lot to me that you would say all those things. This has been an amazing experience and I feel so blessed that I was given the opportunity to be a part of it… and that’s why I want you to let me do the scene.”
She frowns and then shakes her head.
“No… I can’t ask that of you.”
“Seriously… Harriet… I want to do this.”
She looks me in the eyes, neither of us saying anything. I’m scared out of my mind right now, but that’s not going to stop me from doing what needs to be done. Being in this film has been such a blessing and I’m not going to let it be put in jeopardy when we’re this close to finishing it. I’d rather do what needs to be done so we can finish the shoot on time. I do have some selfish reasons, too. I want to see Spencer as soon as possible, which means getting this shot done today.
“You’re sure?” she asks.
“Absolutely.”
Harriet looks down at the ground and then nods her head after a few seconds.
“OK… but… and this is a big but—if at any point you feel in danger, I want you to get out of there.”
“We only get one shot at this.”
“I know, but I’d rather botch the shot and have to figure something else out than put you in any more danger than is absolutely necessary.”
“OK… I’ll get out if things get scary.”
“Good. You know the scene right… how things are supposed to go?”
“Yeah, I watched the stand-ins do it this morning.”
“Good… that should make things easier.”
I nod in response as we start walking toward the house. I did watch my stand-in do the scene, but that doesn’t make me feel any better about being in a house that’s on fire. I’m going to need to be very focused on everything that’s happening to make sure I’m safe and that we get the shot Harriet is looking for.
“I was going to try to get some long shots, because of the stunt double… but I might also have one of the camera men up close to get some medium shots of the scene. If you’re OK with that.”
“Of course… whatever you need.”
“I just think it would really give the film that gritty and real look that we’ve been going for.”
If I didn’t know any better, I would say that she’s starting to get a little excited about having me in the scene instead of the stand in. She seems to realize what I’m thinking because she stops in her tracks and looks at me with a horrified look on her face.
“Wow… I’m… I feel terrible.”
I chuckle and shake my head.
“It’s fine, I totally get it… it’s not a big deal.”
“I’m just a filmmaker at heart… and sometimes that’s not a good thing. I know I seemed… positive about your inclusion, but please… don’t forget to just get out of the house if anything seems like it’s not going exactly how it should.”
“I will… don’t worry.”
“OK… good.”
“What about the guy who is the stunt double for Jarvis?”
“He’s here… of course. I have to go check a couple of things… I’ll be right back.”
I nod my head and look toward the house. I’m feeling pretty confident in shooting the scene… well… as confident as I can be considering I’ll be inside of a house that’s on fire.
“You’re Amy… right?”
I turn as I hear the male voice I don’t recognize.
“Yes….”
“Luke,” he says, extending his hand.
We shake and I nod my head. He looks a little bit like Jarvis, which means he must be the stunt double.
“So… you’re doing this scene with me? Have you ever done stunt work?”
“No,” I say, shaking my head. “I mean… I’ve done most of the stuff on this film… but it’s nothing like what we’re about to do.”
“You’re a brave girl. There’s definitely an element of danger to this stunt.”
I’m starting to feel less and less confident with each passing moment. Now… I’m realizing it was probably a stupid idea. There’s no turning back, though. I just need to be brave and I’ll get through this in one piece. I hope.
“Do you know what happened to the girl that was supposed to be my stunt double?”
“No,” Luke says, shaking his head. “I have no idea… but it’s going to be hard for her to get work in this town if she’s going to just not show up and put a shoot at risk… that much I know.”
I slowly nod my head. It doesn’t exactly make me feel any better, but I suppose it’s a small consolation considering what I’m about to do.
“That’s good… I guess.”
“Sorry… I’m sure that doesn’t make you feel any better. I’m not sure how much Harriet has told you, but I’m telling you this… if things get crazy in there… I want you to get out. I know you want to get the shot… but it’s not worth you getting injured… or worse.”
I nod and look down at the ground. He’s saying the same thing Harriet said, but it helps to hear it from another person. I’m anticipating that the shot will go just as planned, but I definitely have no intention of standing in a burning house for a second longer than necessary.
“Thanks,” I say.
“Are you ready for the scene? Do you have any questions?”
“I’m good to go… I think. I know the scene and how it’s supposed to go… so it should be fine.”
He nods and glances over at the house.
“Good. If you have any questions… I’m here.”
“OK.”
Harriet walks up to us and puts her hand on my arm.
“You’re sure you want to do this?” she asks.
“Yes… I think so.”
She nods and takes a deep breath.
“I guess we should start the shoot… and get it done.”
“I’m ready to go,” I say.
“Let’s do it,” Luke says.
Harriet walks over to the house and stands on the front porch. She cups her hands over her mouth and yells out to everyone.
“Everyone get in your places! We need to start rolling in five!”
The urgency in her voice is felt by everyone on set as they start finishing up whatever last minute things they had been tasked with. I close my eyes and take a few deep breaths as I try to calm myself down. It’s going to be fine… there are lots of people her to make sure everything happens perfectly.
“Ready?” Luke asks.
I open my eyes and nod. As ready as I’ll ever be, not that I’d say that to him. It’s not exactly an inspiring thought.
We walk inside and the house and walk up the stairs to the second floor. It would have been less complicated had the shot not started up here, but I’m not about to suggest we alter the script—not with everything else Harriet is already trying to juggle.
One of the camera men, who is using a Steadicam, follows into the room and stands next to the door. I guess he must be the guy Harriet was talking about… the one who could get some grittier shots as we escape the house. He looks up from his camera and right at me. He looks more nervous than either of us… which isn’t a good sign.
“What’s your name?” I ask.
“Me?”
“Yeah.”
“Barry.”
“You OK… Barry?”
He nods his head and uses the back of his hand to wipe sweat from his forehead.
“You sure?” I ask.
“Yeah… I’m good.”
“Hey,” Luke says, “we can get someone else to do this is if you’re not up to it… but now is the time.”
“I’m… fine.”
I decide not to push him anymore because I don’t want him to be even more nervous that he already is.
Someone blows the air horn, which is the signal for five seconds to go before we start rolling.
“You ready?” Luke asks, turning to me.
“Yeah.”
I sit down on the bed and he sits down next to me. I look out the window as my character has been written to do and I can see the guy outside who is about to throw a Molotov cocktail through the window. Here we go. The air horn sounds a second time to signify the start of the scene. The man outside throws the glass bottle. Time slows down as I watch it fly through the open window… the rag stuffed in the end of it on fire. It lands on the floor on the opposite side of the room and explodes into a ball of fire instantly and spreads to the drapes and carpet.
“Run!” I yell.
I jump up and push Luke toward the door. We run out of the room and toward the stairs. Barry moves into the hall and films us, but doesn’t follow us down the stairs because he has to be in place to film us as we run back up.
We get to the bottom just as Molotov cocktails come through all the front windows of the house. The men playing the bad guys kick the door down and the one in front raises his rifle.
“Back upstairs!” I scream.
We stop and head back up the stairs. Barry takes a couple of steps back and films us as I look back into the room we just came out of. I’m shocked at how quickly the fire has already spread. It’s already moved across the room and is headed toward the hall. We turn toward the other bedroom and run in there.
“Go out the window.”
We try to open the window, but duck when we hear the pop of gunfire.
“What now?” Luke asks.
I look around the room and let my eyes finally settle on the signed baseball on the shelf.
“Follow me… and stick close.” I say.
The script calls for my character to run down the stairs and throw the baseball at the assailant as he turns to her. The idea is that it hits him and distracts him long enough for them to run out the front door, where there is only one other guy. Luke is supposed to tackle him, knock him out with a punch to the face and then we make our escape as the house burns down behind us.
Barry backs up down the hall, looking over his shoulder the whole time. The flames have spread to the edge of the doorway in the other room, but it still gives us a few feet to work with. We should be OK… even though this cutting it a little closer than I would’ve liked. Barry moves out of the way and I go down the stairs first. Luke is right behind me with Barry in the rear, filming us.
The assailant raises his gun and I throw the baseball. I manage to hit him square in the chest, which was the idea… although I’m sure there was a lot less force behind it than if someone else had thrown it. Luke pretends to punch him in the stomach and I push him over. He stands up and runs toward the back of the house once he’s out of the shot. We run toward the open front door, Barry just a few steps behind me. Luke runs in front of me to go after the guy outside.
“Ahhh!”
It’s Barry. I’m already outside before I can react. Luke has tackled the guy out here and taken his gun… and is running toward their truck. I risk a glance over my shoulder, not wanting to totally ruin the shot… and Barry isn’t behind me.
“Barry!”
Without thinking, I turn around and sprint back at the house.
“Amy! No!!”
I see the fire crews rush toward the house, but the guys are wearing full gear and they are moving slower than I am. I still need to get in there and help Barry. He’s about six feet from the door, struggling to get to his feet because of the camera and gear he’s wearing. He must have tripped coming down the stairs and fallen. The fire has spread through the bottom floor of the house. It is getting closer to him with each passing second. I drop to my knees and grab him.
“C’mon, Barry… you have to get up!”
I push my feet against the ground and manage to get him back on his feet. We run toward the door as the flames move ever closer to us with each passing second. I hear a crack and look up. The last thing I see is a giant piece of wood falling toward me. Everything goes black.