Chapter 41.

A young woman, who introduced herself as Angelina, opened the car door for Anna. When the catch hiding between the seats eluded Anna, Angelina assisted with the seatbelt in a well-practiced manoeuvre. In one fluid movement, she stretched the seatbelt around without touching Anna, clicked it into place without so much as an exploratory rattle and gently let the belt settle across Anna’s chest before she could even think about being anxious of the intimacy of it all.

“Happy?” Angelina said.

“Yes,” Anna laughed.

In another blur of activity, the young woman settled in the driver’s seat and started the car and they were silently rolling down the incline and into the traffic of the main road.

“Oh,” Anna exclaimed at the car’s quietness. “Electric.”

“First time?”

“Actually, yes,” Anna replied.

“It’s a bit unnerving, isn’t it.” Angelina replied, tilting her head up to the rear-view mirror, her eyes creasing in a smile. “Feels like someone’s knocked the handbrake off, but you’ll get used to it. The whole studio fleet has gone electric as a special requirement of the series.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, yeah. The Atlassia production has always aimed to be low carbon, what with the apocalyptic storyline you’d see why.”

“I suppose, yes.” Anna blushed a little. She hadn’t read up on the films since she’d realised who Jess was. It felt intrusive.

“I think it’s one of the things that make it so popular,” Angelina continued. “You know, with Jessica Lambert’s credentials as well.”

Anna twitched at the mention of Jess's name and the beat of her heart made itself known in her chest. She stared from the window to avert her face and regain her composure. She was going to have to get used to this.

“How so?” Anna said evenly.

Angelina tilted her head up to the mirror again. “She and the creators pushed for it from the start. And she doesn’t just talk the talk either. She’s not one of those celebrities who bangs on about climate change then travels by private jet everywhere. She refuses to sign up to any contract with a schedule that would have her travel by air.”

“Oh,” Anna said, unsure she was managing the balancing act between intense interest and a level that would be polite. “I had no idea.”

“That’s what I love about her. She’s principled.”

Anna didn’t know about Jessica Lambert, but it was something she could imagine of Jess.

“That and being smoking hot,” Angelina said, with a huge grin reflected in the mirror.

Anna blushed. In fact it was so intense Anna broke into a sweat. This wasn’t like her. Mayhews were meant to be composed at all times. But the combination of a possible acting job, the prospect of bumping into Jess and being superstar Jessica Lambert’s ex secret fling was quite testing.

Angelina added, “Sorry, I read you were bi. Thought you might also appreciate her.”

That was an understatement.

“Oh,” Anna said. “Yes. You’re right. Smoking hot.”

This was strange, talking about your ex as if she were public property. That and being an open book too.

“I’ll shut up,” Angelina chuckled. “Not long to the studio.”

“Which one are we heading to?” Anna asked, grateful for the change in subject.

“Richmond Film Studios.”

“I thought they went into liquidation?” Anna remembered hearing a headline on the radio a year ago, but hadn’t pursued it: part of her avoidance of as many things associated with acting as possible.

“New owner apparently. He’s taken over the whole complex. Some of the small companies are still based there, but the rest’s been reserved for Atlassia.”

“Right,” Anna said.

She was out of the loop about almost everything. She hadn’t acted for years, had no idea how things had moved on, and that was before trying to unravel the enigma of Jessica Lambert. A rising sense of panic threatened to send her yelling at the driver to turn round.

Anna closed her eyes and listened to the quiet whirring of the car over the road through the west of London and when she opened them again the city had opened up to waves of trees and parkland and the buildings were morphing into the Georgian architecture of Richmond.

“We’re coming up to the gates.”

“Oh.” God. They were already there.

The familiar imposing frontispiece of the grand studio building loomed overhead, the great white façade glowing in the winter sun. She’d been involved in a couple of productions here, a film and TV series. Perhaps some of it would be the same.

Angelina pulled up in front of the main building and leapt out, releasing Anna with a slick movement as before.

“Wow. The producer’s coming over to greet you,” she whispered. “I was kind of hoping for Jessica Lambert,” she said conspiratorially. “I never get to drive her.”

And Anna’s face burned again. She was grateful it wasn’t Jess. She didn’t want to be this ruffled and unprepared when they met for the first time and it would preferably be without an audience too.

“Anna!” The slight form of Matt was bounding over to them. She was barely out of the car before he grabbed her hand and gave it an enthusiastic shake. “I am so pleased you’ve decided to sign up.”

“I think we need to talk about that first, Mr Abramson.”

“Matt, please.”

“Matt,” she confirmed. “I have a lot of questions, and you should of me too.”

“Of course,” he said, his enthusiasm undiminished. “Shall we?”

Before Anna followed, she turned to Angelina. “Thank you for driving me,” she said.

Angelina saluted with a big grin and skipped away around the car. The vehicle silently pulled away, the only sound being the grit beneath the wheels, and she was gone. It was as if Anna lived at a different pace to those she encountered today.

She took a deep breath and steadily walked beside Matt. She deliberately set a moderate controlled speed – if she didn’t regain her poise now, she never would.

“Thank you, Matt,” she said, a little more at ease with herself.

He led on, twitching with energy at every step.

“I can’t tell you how excited I am about this,” he continued. “We’re wrapping up the feature-length series opener and going into post-production then working on sets for the series. All this building,” he waved his arm over the long 1930s warehouse that housed the original studios, “is dedicated to post-production and in-situ companies. We’re over there in the new complex.” He threw his arm to point beyond.

Anna had to smile. His enthusiasm was infectious.

“I think that must have been built since I was last here,” she said.

“Of course, Beyond Turbulence was shot here wasn’t it?”

“That’s right.” It was flattering that he’d followed her career. Anxiety gnawed at her though. Did he have an inflated opinion of her acting abilities, perhaps based on her old performances? She didn’t know what she was capable of now.

They passed a square Georgian house, which would have stood alone in the countryside alongside its manor when built. It was a studio café now and the path took them through the old walled garden behind, tables and chairs outside occupied by studio staff in thick coats and no doubt the odd star. Anna tried not to look for Jess but she scanned around anyway. Beyond was a lawn and a small wood of trees, bare of leaves this time of year, but Anna remembered them fondly from summers past, then the new complex opened up before them and Anna found herself staring up at a colossal building.

“Four sound stages.” Matt beamed. “All of them ours. Dressing rooms, hair and makeup, offices right by the stages. It’s luxury. The roof has solar panels the entire length and we even generate enough electricity to pass back to the grid.”

As Matt led her into the building, through corridors that opened into cavernous stage areas, Anna half listened with excitement and was fearful of catching a glimpse of Jess.

“These sets are in place for shooting the entire series,” he said, waving his arm towards a snow-covered cliff and ravine, unconvincing in the flesh, but Anna knew what the magic of lighting and post-production could achieve.

“You’ll get to know them well over the next few months.”

“The next few months?” Anna said, her complete attention switching to Matt.

“Yes.”

“I thought this was a bit part? Are the appearances spread out?”

“This is no bit part. Your role is Kalemdra’s main adversary this season.”

“I’m sorry? I thought, maybe I’d assumed, that Celia said this was a minor role.”

“Not at all.”

Anna’s heart tripped over. “Mr Abramson—”

“Matt.”

“I haven’t acted in a long time. I’m not sure I can pull off a minor appearance let alone a main role. This is risky, for all of us.”

“We’ll accommodate you.” He shrugged.

“It’s not impossible that I might freeze in front of a large cast and crew.”

“We can keep the crew minimal on those days with a closed set.”

This man was indefatigable, undeterred and exuded boundless energy.

“Also,” Anna persisted, “as far as I know, Atlassia is a dynamic and physical kind of film and I’m not at my fittest.”

“That’s why we have stunt doubles.”

“There is also the matter of starring with Jessica Lambert.”

There. She’d said it. The issue that had been nagging at her most loudly and had been on her mind constantly. Anna had to dig deep to keep her composure.

“Is she comfortable with my appearance?”

Here Matt hesitated and Anna’s insides sank. So there was an issue and her spirits fell lower at the thought that Jess might not be as keen to see her as this man was.

“Does Jess know you’re offering the role to me?” she asked quietly.

“Yes,” he said.

“And she’s OK with that?”

He paused. “You have to understand that Jess is above all fair.”

That was no answer at all and Anna’s hopes plunged another league.

“She can understand some of my reasons for wanting to cast you – and the other reasons, she doesn’t have to know about.” Matt laughed. He gestured for them to continue. “Jess is the most fair-minded person I’ve ever met. She wouldn’t stand in the way of anyone. Up to a point. You see, she is also one of the most forgiving people I’ve ever met too, something I’ve taken advantage of, I imagine, far too often. You can expect Jess to be patient, is what I can tell you, but there is a line.”

Anna looked at Matt and decoded his speech. She’d always been comfortable at reading in between the lines. It was a reassurance but also a warning, protective on his part too, which Anna admired.

“I think I understand, Mr Abramson.” She didn’t qualify it with Matt. “And I think I can work with that acceptably. Would there be much screen time with…Jessica?” She still had trouble saying the name. It seemed cumbersome and foreign compared with her familiar “Jess”.

“You’ll have appearances all season. Your relationship is one of the main threads this series.”

“Relationship?”

“Yes, the whole series focusses on Kalemdra making allies in the Northern lands and your forest domain, and your interaction is by far the most intriguing. The last studio hated the Sapphic slant.”

Anna paused, her heart thudding. “Just how Sapphic are we talking?”

Matt narrowed his eyes and smiled. “Meaningful looks, simmering desire, I want the chemistry to sizzle on screen.”

Oh.

“Suggestive rather than explicit is what we’re going for,” he lightened. “This is a series that’s aimed at a large age range so we’re not talking full-on sex scenes.”

“I want that in writing,” Anna said, more sharply than she intended. “I want a no-nudity clause and that is non-negotiable.”

“Of course,” Matt said.

“And Jessica is all right with this level of intimacy too?” She held her breath and felt the blood threatening to fill her cheeks.

“Jess is a pro,” Matt said.

And the answer killed her hopes as much as it reassured her.