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"Maybe. Or maybe she'll understand that neither of you created this situation." He stood, decision made. "Get dressed. We're flying to LA."

The private jet Simon arranged climbed through clear skies. Code sat across from me, laptop open, still working. I couldn't stop looking at Sophie's photo on my phone.

"What am I going to say to her?" I asked.

"Start with common ground. You're both actresses. You both understand what this industry costs." Code glanced up. "Don't lead with Russell. Build trust first."

"When did you become an expert in interrogation techniques?"

"Twenty years of getting people to talk." His almost-smile appeared. "Most of the time, they just want someone to listen."

An hour later, we stood in front of a converted beach house in Venice. Sophie's apartment occupied the second floor. Paint peeled from the walls, and the exterior stairs creaked under our feet. Code knocked, and I tried to breathe normally.

The woman who opened the door looked younger than in her photos. No makeup, hair in a messy bun, wearing yoga pants and an oversized sweatshirt. Her eyes went wide.

"Oh my God."

"Hi." I tried for friendly, non-threatening. "Are you Sophie? Sophie Tremaine?"

"Yes." Her voice came out faint, disbelieving. She stared at me as if I might disappear.

"I know this is really weird, but could we talk to you for a few minutes? It's important."

Confusion flickered across her face, but she stepped back. "Um, okay. Come in."

The apartment was small but tidy. Secondhand furniture, framed playbills on the walls, and a stack of drama textbooks on the coffee table. Sophie gestured us toward a worn couch and perched on the edge of an armchair, still looking stunned.

"I'm sorry to just show up like this," I said. "I'm Kit, and this is Code."

"I know who you are." Sophie's laugh came out nervous. "Everyone knows who you are."

"Right." I felt the familiar weight of being Kit Lord, the brand. "How long have you been acting?"

"Twelve years. Since I was sixteen." She picked at the hem of her sweatshirt. "Why are you here?"

I needed to ease into this. Build rapport like Code said. "What got you into it? Acting, I mean."

Sophie blinked at the unexpected question. "My high school drama teacher. She saw something in me, I guess. Said I had presence." A small smile appeared. "I believed her."

"Good teachers change everything." I leaned back slightly, trying to seem less intimidating. "I had a coach who told me I'd never make it because I was too tall for romantic leads. Took me three years to stop hearing her voice in my head during auditions."

"You're not too tall."

"I know that now. But at fifteen? I believed her." I met Sophie's eyes. "This business is brutal, isn't it?"

Something in her posture relaxed. "The worst. Everyone tells you to follow your dreams, but nobody mentions that ninety percent of the time you're just collecting rejections."

"And the other ten percent, you're terrified you'll screw it up and prove everyone who doubted you was right."

Sophie's smile turned genuine. "Exactly. Like, I finally get a co-starring role on a network show, and I spend the entire shoot convinced they'll replace me."

"What show?"

"Night Shift. Medical drama. Lasted half a season before it got cancelled." She shrugged. "Story of my life."

"Hey, you got a co-starring credit. That's not nothing. Most actors never get that far."

"Most actors quit before they hit twelve years of waiting tables between ads and guest spots on procedurals." The bitterness crept into her voice despite her obvious effort to keep it out.