“Exactly,” James said, pointing a finger aggressively at Edie.
“But what does that prove?” Cassidy asked. “So, whoever is behind the festival has deep pockets and had no sense of what they wanted to do with this thing when it started, so what? What does that have to do with us?”
“I think if we suggest something that is good for the festival, that person with deep pockets might feel inclined to give it to us.”
Edie pointed an acrylic back to the shore with such force she splashed water up on James. “I thought you wanted us to stay away from our phones because we were being spied on,”
“Yeah,” James said, blocking himself with his hands from any more water droplets, “and we still need to be careful about the ways we use our phones and the things we do and don’t say around them, but maybe we can play the system a little bit and see where it gets us.”
“How?” Cassidy asked.
“You want your friend back, right? Why don’t you do a video where you say how glad you are that security found her or something? It will show they’re competent and everyone on the island is safe.”
Cassidy shook her head in complete disbelief. “What are you even talking about? They’re not going to justproduceher because I ask them to in a way that they like. She’s probably fucking … I don’t know, under that damn waterfall with a broken leg or something. Making a video isn’t going to get her found.”
“For real, you make it sound like her friend was kidnapped by this deep-pockets friend of yours,” Edie said, throwing the hair that fell over her shoulder back again, a little more irritated this time.
James’ jaw tightened. “I don’t know what happened to her, okay? I don’t know any more than you do. I’m trying to figure it out, just the same as you. As far as I’m concerned, you two are the ones with deep-pocket friends, living it up in your villas and tents.”
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” Edie asked. Her anger hardened her features. She turned in the water and started wading back.
“Wait, Edie, come back. We need to work together,” James said, moving to follow her through the water.
“Why? I don’t know you; I don’t owe you anything,” she called over her shoulder. Cassidy stood in place, watching the slow speed chase.
“Because we still remember each other,” he said. “And Rose is already starting to forget.”
Edie turned. “Rose is not going to forget me, okay?”
“We all saw what happened to Ryan, and now we’re all seeing things we can’t explain. All I’m saying is, give my idea a shot and see what happens.”
“Whatever, James. Fuck your ideas,” Edie said, and walked back to the shore without another word.
James sighed and turned back to Cassidy.
“Whatdidyou mean by that?” she asked.
“Mean by what?” James asked, but he avoided her gaze.
“By us being the ones with deep pocket friends? That’s a pretty fucked up accusation to be lobbed around by anyone on this island right now. It’s not like anyone who’s here is hard up for cash.”
“Maybe if you didn’t just surround yourself with a bunch of vapid white girls, you could see that that isn’t true.”
“Excuse me?” Indignation heated her words. “We all got selected to come here because of our fame. Maybe some people haven’t spent their money correctly and aren’t doing well now, but—”
James laughed. “What would you know? You’re a Hollywood heiress who’s never not had money.”
“Yeah, I am, but that doesn’t mean that I don’t know what it means to not have money. My parents both came from nothing, and my family has always told me what it means to be really poor and how to be responsible with money.”
“Cry me a fucking river.” James threw the words at her and stood with his arms crossed, daring her to say anything else. The stance was familiar to Cassidy; she’d seen it in person and online dozens of times and knew that it meant the other person thought they had her in checkmate.
“You know what, Edie was right. I don’t know what’s going on, but maybe you do have something to do with it.”
“Oh, yeah, blame the self-made guy for having something to do with it. I recognize you and her from all the fucking pictures that are plastered everywhere in LA and New York and overseas of you two. You’re models who came from money, and maybe you’re not Cherish fucking King, but you’re not nobodies. Did you know who I was before we met? Huh?”
Cassidy wanted to leave but didn’t. She and James locked eyes, but she shuffled on her feet uncomfortably. Maybe this time, it was checkmate, but she didn’t want to admit that. James looked away first, to shake his head and scoff.
“No, you didn’t. Well, that’s what happens when fortune is slow to come to you and you’ve had to build it yourself. I’m only on this island out of luck, and not just the kind of luck that got us all randomly selected to be here, but out of the kind of luck that actually has a lot of hard work and sacrifice behind it. Maybe I was in the right place at the right time, but I worked to find that place. So, yeah, you can think I had something to do with it, but if I was going to suspect anyone here of being behind your friend going missing, the last person I’d accuse would be me.” He didn’t even give Cassidy a second glance before he turned and walked out of the ocean.
