AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Mrs. Flannery now,” she replied, “but, please, just call me Kaylie.”
Tracy cut in. “Okay, now look Kaylie or Alan in the eye when they talk to you. Forget about the cameras. When I give you this signal…”
Kaylie had heard the spiel a hundred times before.
“Places, everyone!” Jim said loudly, and people scurried. Tracy led Dr. Henshaw to his spot on the end of the couch, Alan perched in his usual chair and Kaylie sat in her usual chair.
“Quiet, please, and five…four…three…”
The lead-in music filtered through the speakers, and Kaylie forced herself to smile calmly, as if every day she interviewed the man who was her attacker’s doctor.
“Good morning,” Alan said, grinning confidently into the cameras, and the show was off.
Kaylie worked on automatic. They talked about the doctor’s forthcoming book, which he’d sold just the day before to a major publisher, and they discussed psychosis in broad terms. Alan brought up Johnston’s name, but only in regard to the premiere of Obsession. Not only were clips from the film shown, but also footage of the original attack. It took all of Kaylie’s professional acting skills to appear calm and detached when inside, her heart was thumping and sweat was beading along her spine.
Just let me get through this, she prayed inwardly as she turned to Dr. Henshaw and asked him about security at the hospital. The doctor became slightly defensive, but soon the interview and the ordeal were over.
Later, after the final segment where Chef Glenn whipped up his favorite apple torte, Kaylie left the set on unsteady legs. This has to be the worst, she thought, content to stay in her office for the rest of the day. She flipped on the radio, answered her mail and gathered some ideas for future shows. She wasn’t going to be caught in a lurch again!
At three o’clock, Alan knocked on the door and stepped into her office. “Well,” he said, smiling broadly. “Did you hear? The phones haven’t stopped ringing. Today’s show was a bona fide success! From the response, Jim thinks it may be in the top ten for the year.”
Great. “It must’ve been the apple torte,” Kaylie said, and Alan rolled his eyes.
“You should’ve seen the switchboard! Becky was going crazy out there. And that’s not the best news.”
“No?” Kaylie tried to sound interested, but her heart wasn’t in it. Alan didn’t seem to notice. “I’ve had a million calls but only two that really count. One from my agent, the other from Cameron James. He’s agreed to direct again, and he’s got a screenwriter lined up to work out a sequel to Obsession! Triumph Pictures is interested in producing, and one of the major studios—probably Zeus—is backing the film. It’s only a matter of time!”
Kaylie didn’t know what to say. Alan was flying so high, he was so exhilarated that she didn’t want to burst his bubble by saying she wasn’t interested. “What about West Coast Morning? she asked quietly.
“Oh, who knows! It would only be for a few months… Jim would understand.”
“I don’t know,” Kaylie began.
“You don’t know? You don’t know? What’s to know? This is the opportunity of a lifetime and you don’t know? What is this? Are you already trying to squeeze a little more money—”
“Of course not.”
“Then you’re afraid, right? Afraid of failure? Or afraid of some loony taking after you again? Or is it something else?” he said, thinking aloud as he closed the distance to her desk. “Don’t tell me, it’s Flannery, isn’t it? You’re afraid of him—of what he’ll say, aren’t you?”
Kaylie’s temper got the better of her tongue. “I don’t think it’s even worth discussing. I haven’t heard anything concrete yet. No one’s offered me a part and so, as far as I can see, it’s a moot point.”
Alan threw his hands into the air. “God, Kaylie! We are talking major motion picture here! And you’re not even willing to pursue it? What’s gotten into you?”
“Maybe she’s just using her head.” Zane was standing in the doorway, and his face was a mask of slow-burning fury. Something was wrong. Kaylie could read it in the set of his jaw. Slowly, he reached into his jacket pocket, withdrew a tape and flipped the tape onto Kaylie’s desk. “How about explaining this?” he suggested to Alan.
“What—a tape? Music? Rap? What?” Alan shrugged and lifted his palms. “What’s going on, Flannery?”
But Kaylie knew. On the tape was the voice of “Ted.” The warning. But Alan? No way. Her gaze flew to Zane’s, but he was concentrating on Alan.
“Nope. Just a conversation with a friend of mine. His name’s Ted,” Zane said, crossing his arms over his chest.
“Ted who?” Alan asked, sending Kaylie a glance that insinuated Zane was walking around with more than one screw loose.
“I don’t know his last name. Maybe you can fill that part in.”
“Me?”
