>
VoyForums
[ Show ]
Support VoyForums
[ Shrink ]
VoyForums Announcement: Programming and providing support for this service has been a labor of love since 1997. We are one of the few services online who values our users' privacy, and have never sold your information. We have even fought hard to defend your privacy in legal cases; however, we've done it with almost no financial support -- paying out of pocket to continue providing the service. Due to the issues imposed on us by advertisers, we also stopped hosting most ads on the forums many years ago. We hope you appreciate our efforts.

Show your support by donating any amount. (Note: We are still technically a for-profit company, so your contribution is not tax-deductible.) PayPal Acct: Feedback:

Donate to VoyForums (PayPal):

[ Login ] [ Contact Forum Admin ] [ Main index ] [ Post a new message ] [ Search | Check update time | Archives: [1], 2 ]

[ Next Thread | Previous Thread | Next Message | Previous Message ]

Date Posted: 17:03:13 05/03/02 Fri
Author: Repost Fairy
Author Host/IP: 64.193.19.25
Subject: Chapter 20 - Part 2
In reply to: KGilbert 's message, "Dreams in the Dark - Chapter 20 and forthcoming" on 17:00:21 05/03/02 Fri

He really was liking this. He smiled at the woman, seeing that she was starting to understand; he began his plan, then. He had gotten Christopher to run some of the footage of this woman and Michael for him this afternoon, had studied it carefully--especially when something went wrong and there were a few seconds of real reaction caught there. What he had noticed, as well, was a man who was almost painfully in love with a woman--and a woman who seemed only half-certain about a man, in return, one who was attracted but hadn't yet made up her mind. This, of course, didn't show in their characters, but he could picture it clearly, nonetheless; the smile deepened. And it was this fact which had made him start to think.

His smile continued, as the thoughts rolled quickly by; it all seemed quite reasonable. From what he knew of Michael thus far, he seemed to be a man who was used to getting what he wanted rather easily--at least as far as women were concerned; it was, indeed, one of the reasons why the actor had been so astounded when he hadn't been allowed to marry Simone. Helmut sighed, remembering. From what he could tell, that had definitely been a first.

He regretted the whole situation still--as mostly outside of it as he had been. He knew, in fact, that that whole, terrible incident had scarred the man--but he also assumed that he had not changed too much, when it came to getting what he wanted. When the actor chose a woman, he no doubt expected that she would respond, in the end--even if it might take a little time--and, being so confident, he wouldn't be inclined to push things along very quickly, would no doubt wait till the correct moment, assured that it would finally arrive. Helmut's smile deepened once again. But, if the star had to fight for her with another man--another man who posed no real threat to the woman to make him careless, whose interest could even protect her from other predators while still never being more than a confidant . . . Well, that could bring things to a very interesting ending, indeed; he had to hold back his laugh. And it was an ending which might actually see the pairing far more content and assured than would otherwise come about.

It was this reasoning, then, which was making Helmut act the way he was. He had seen the look of possessive fire in Michael's eyes earlier today, had seen that he would, indeed, fight for this woman--if any serious challenge were presented. Now, if this innocent were faced with a man who could romance her, without actually posing any real danger to her obvious inexperience, one who could even fill her mind with the better side of the man who loved her, who could subtly encourage her to take the path which some part of her obviously ached for--well, it was just the sort of psychology which had worked a million times before, if sometimes unintentionally. All he had to do was begin.

These various musings took only seconds, had been developing all day--and the reasons for them were many. There were, of course, the business motives--the fact that a relationship here could definitely benefit the studio, could provide them with the sort of sizzle many of their films lacked. Mostly, though, Helmut felt badly about the way the man's previous relationship had turned out--and, given the fire which clearly existed between the pair, a fire which only needed to be brought out, this would definitely be the best path; he repressed his chuckle. Well, that and the fact that he had a weakness for happy endings.

He smiled, then, as he gazed into the woman, his look all charm; he was very ready to see someone's relationship work. "I hear you have a new film you're preparing for."

Oh. She blinked, wondering how he knew that. There was a small smile, as she tried to hide her fear. "A comedy."

Mm. He looked into her further, a little teasing. "Not afraid, are you?" She blushed, and he smiled soothingly. "Don't worry. I'm sure you'll do *much* better than Kate would have." He addressed her confidentially. "You're so much more suited to the role."

Oh! This opened her eyes. Did he mean . . .? "Kate was supposed to . . .?"

He nodded, looking a little bored--glad she was with him so far; now, if he could just manipulate a little more of her opinions . . . "Yes." He looked sad. "But she doesn't pull in that much money, really, isn't the sort of star I'd like to see us have." He gazed at her more deeply again--eyes full of new meaning. "Not like you will be, I'm sure."

Oh. His insinuations hit their target, her eyes widening further--heart thumping. Did he mean--*he* had been the one to get her cast in this role? Her mind whirled. Lord. The thumping grew louder. This day really was becoming odd . . .

Her amazement was obvious, made something in her jangle; she didn't know how to take this. She looked at him curiously, shaking her head. "Why me?"

Mm. Helmut smiled, seeing that she had caught onto his--erroneous--hints. Good. "Well, you're young, beautiful." The smile deepened, his look almost unbearably sympathetic. "And you seemed so forlorn in that last role. I'm sure this one will suit you much better."

It was quite subtle work. Everything he had said had been open-ended; he had never once actually claimed to have been the one to have pushed for her part in this film--but his insinuations were clear. And every one of them made a nearby actor nearly explode from rage, as he listened--his fury growing with every word. Damn him. So he was after her, after all. He should have known. An innocent like Nikita would make the perfect cover wife.

His rage, though, was invisible to the woman he was so very devoted to; she continued to blink, trying to take this new twist in. She still didn't understand--but, before she opened her mouth to talk him out of it, her fears nearly taking over, she realized she was better off just accepting her good fortune. It would certainly do no good to give the role away so quickly--however successful she might or might not prove to be. She smiled, genuinely grateful. "Thank you." Not only had he gotten her her next role, but there was just something so friendly and open about him; the smile deepened. She was liking this man better all the time.

This, however, was all their listener could stand. No more. There was only so much he could take before he did something utterly irreversible. He had to act now.

Michael's blood was boiling, as he caught up to the two of them, his hand immediately taking up a place on Nikita's lower back--and he was almost brutally satisfied when he felt her shiver at his touch. Good. Better that she react to him than to this imposter. His voice was more a growl than a greeting. "Helmut."

Ah. The banker smiled. It was so hard not to laugh. His plan was working wonderfully; he had never seen such fire in this man's eyes before. Good. He greeted him cheerfully. "Michael!" He looked back to the woman before focusing on him again. "I was just talking to your lovely co-star." He gazed back to her, teeth sparkling. "Don't you think she's just perfect for this next film?"

Right. The actor was nearly shaking, couldn't believe this; his fingers almost clawed over the woman's back. The blond man had, with very little effort, just taken credit for all of his own risk in bringing her into this next role--was no doubt winning many points with her, in her innocence, for his kind actions--but Michael had no intention of letting him win. He almost shuddered from rage. No one was taking her away from him again.

He was, of course, deeply lost to these emotions--was finding it hard to see a way out. It took everything in him not to pull her almost painfully close to him, screaming, "Mine!" He took a deep breath, his voice deeper than usual--trying not to speak through his teeth. "Perfect," he managed.

Huh. Nikita was lost at the undertones which seemed to spark around her, was way too uninformed about the emotions here to even begin to guess at them. All she knew was that Michael seemed more protective of her now than she had ever seen him before, was nearly shaking with it--but the way he was touching her . . . Lord. She only hoped she would survive.

She tried not to groan, looking desperately for comprehension--without much success. There was a danger to the actor now, the same kind there had been when she had first met him--the kind which had made her fear the rumors about Simone's death. Once again, though, her main reaction--somehow--wasn't a desire to avoid him. Not at all. Instead, she was trying to ward off the very strong need to go to him, to do anything and everything he asked of her--something deep inside of her burning wildly with a highly unfamiliar sense of want; her heart thumped heavily. Oh Lord. What in heaven's name was happening to her now?

Hm. Helmut watched all of this with pleasure. It was going rather well; he pressed his advantage. "In fact, I was just about to ask the lovely . . . may I call you Nikita?" It took her a second, but she nodded distractedly; he went on, the smile quite genuine. "The lovely Nikita to dinner with me." He looked back to Michael cordially. "I was planning on going out with Julie and Jurgen, anyway, but we'd all love to have her along."

Oh, Lord. The thumping became even louder. It was at this point, after all, that she felt Michael's fist take hold of the excess fabric at the back of her ornate dress, and she had a sudden fear that, if she moved, she would find herself quite naked a moment later. Her heart raced further at the thought--so very lost. Just what on earth was happening to her now?

She looked to him, bemused--searching for clues. This new arrival didn't seem like one of the ones he had warned her about--but, she guessed, who was she to know? The fact that she would be with two people she basically trusted was a good sign as well, but, still, the way her co-star was acting . . . Her mind spun. Just what *was* going on?

She didn't understand at all, but tried to follow his lead--forgetting about this new man's significant place in the chain of command. Her excuse seemed obvious. "Um, Michael's been giving me . . ."

Christ. He stopped her there, although his fist was still clutching her dress with white knuckles. He knew a command performance when he heard one--even if she didn't yet. He was staring daggers at Helmut. "It can wait. She'll be free."

Mm--wonderful. It took a lot for the banker not to laugh at this scene. The two of them couldn't have responded better if they had been scripted for it; he played into his role--already seeing the effect of his supposed interference. "Splendid!" He looked back to the woman. "Can you be ready by seven?"

What? She looked from Michael--who seemed about to hit somebody but who had just sent her on this date, nonetheless--to Helmut, who was the picture of friendly charm. This was definitely getting weird. "Um, sure," she managed--although she wasn't entirely certain what she was saying. She was, to put it mildly, a little more than distracted.

Perfect--absolutely perfect. Helmut continued to play his part. "Excellent!" He lifted her hand to kiss it, bringing her attention back to him. "I'll see you at your dressing room at seven." He looked to her companion, as he let her go, smiling; he couldn't wait to see where this went. "Michael." And then he was gone.

[ Next Thread | Previous Thread | Next Message | Previous Message ]

Replies:

  • Chapter 20 - Part 3 (end of chapter 20) -- Repost Fairy, 17:05:46 05/03/02 Fri
    [ Contact Forum Admin ]

    Forum timezone: GMT-5
    VF Version: 3.00b, ConfDB:
    Before posting please read our privacy policy.
    VoyForums(tm) is a Free Service from Voyager Info-Systems.
    Copyright © 1998-2019 Voyager Info-Systems. All Rights Reserved.