Chapter 26: Threat
Chapter 26: Threat
At the edges of the site, Mason and Kane stood side by side as they watched the two actresses’ performance.
Mason was rubbing his chin toward the end.
"Interesting.This really is quite interesting! Eris was defeated by the supporting actress just like that, and she wasn't even able to fight back even once.This newcomer, Wendy Finch, is quite a force to be reckoned."
He wasn't exaggerating; the leading actress had indeed been well and truly defeated.
This sort of thing only happened when two opposing talents acted together in a single scene.
It was sometimes caused by a discrepancy in the strength of the characters as written, but there were instances where the rift was due to the gap of skills between the actors or actresses.
Either way, it always left a bad impression on anyone watching.
From the onset, it was clear that Eris possessed the leading role, and her character was by no means a doormat.
With this recent series of bad takes, anyone could see that it was Eris the actress who failed to measure up to the role.
And that wasn't all.
In the process, Wendy had also been able to showcase her acting skills.
Eris' constant blunders weren't all her fault.
In fact, it could all be attributed to Wendy's eyes, her subtle movements, and the tone of her voice.
It had all messed up the other actress' momentum and toyed with Eris' psyche.
Mason smacked his lips, looking like he was enjoying every bit of what was unfolding.
"Do you think Wendy maybe has a grudge against Eris? Even I think this is a bit too much...Oh! Something even more interesting has been going through the crew's grapevine today.Do you want to hear it?"
Kane shot him a flat look.
At the moment, the actor was not only in demand within the industry, but he also held two percent of Glory Media's shares.
That might not sound like much to a lay person, but the annual revenue of the company was always astronomical.
Two percent of that was a hefty sum that Mason could live off of comfortably for the rest of his life.
This of course meant that he was on good terms with Kane, and knew that the CEO had been born with a poker face.
Mason had never minded his cool and aloof expressions at all.
"I'll tell you anyway!"
Mason chuckled and told his story.
"One of the supporting actresses here got her face all red and swollen after applying the makeup.Director Williams asked someone to check on the cosmetics and investigated, and they found out that some harmful substance had been added to the stuff.The juicy part is that that same set ofNôvelDrama.Org owns all content.
makeup was supposed to have been used by Wendy, too.Director Williams ordered the staff to keep this matter under wraps and they're all hush-hush about it."
Kane was not interested in such trifling gossip at all.
He took another long look at Wendy in the distance and then strode away.
"Wait, what? You're just going to leave like this?"
Mason hurried after him.
"Wait for me! I'm finished for the day.Let's go grab some drinks."
"No."
"Aww, why not? Is your wife forbidding you to go have some fun?"
At the mention of Rosie, Kane's blank expression immediately twisted into one of disgust.
"Don't even speak of the woman."
"Really? Did you two have another quarrel?"
Mason chased after him and the two both left.
It was already six in the evening when everyone started to pack up the filming site.
Wendy went to the dressing room to change her clothes and remove her makeup.
There were a lot of people inside, and the place was a mess.
But the moment she stepped inside, all the laughter and conversation instantly stopped.
Everyone looked at her curiously.
Wendy brushed their gazes aside and greeted them with modesty, to which they responded with polite smiles of their own.
She was aware of what was going on in their minds.
They had all seen her best Eris earlier, and she knew it must have been comparable to David beating Goliath.
After all, Eris was an A-lister while she was a mere newcomer.
Of course the others would be wary of her.
Not that Wendy cared about any of that.
She quickly changed her clothes and left.
"Miss Finch, Eris wants to see you!"
Ana had been waiting for Wendy from a dark corner outside the dressing room, and when the latter emerged, she rushed over.
"Miss Finch," the assistant whispered while keeping her head down.
"Please come with me."
Huh? Eris really couldn't hold herself back for too long, could she? Wendy smiled and followed Ana.
Since the day she had learned that Eris was playing the heroine of the show, Wendy had always known that they would cross paths multiple times.
It was inevitable, so she had decided early on to welcome the encounters with open arms.
Eris probably had something to say, and so did Wendy.
Eris’ van was parked close to the filming site, and when Ana opened the door, Wendy got inside without any hesitation.
The other actress hadn't changed from her costumes yet, and she was leaning against her seat with her eyes closed.
The sudden sound of the door opening jolted her upright, and Eris opened her eyes to the sight of Wendy.
She immediately glared with hatred.
Wendy just smiled.
How typical, Eris would only show her true face when nobody else was around.
Wendy settled comfortably on one of the vacant seats, not even bothering with greetings.
"What do you want?" she asked point blank.
Eris could only stare at her.
Three years ago, this girl hadn't even known how to dress up beautifully.
Wendy had been weak and easy to bully.
But she seemed to have completely changed.
Loathe was she to admit it, even Eris couldn't deny that Wendy had become exquisitely beautiful.
At the moment, she had on a simple red dress, but her class and grace somehow made it look like a luxury brand.
Her black curls tumbled over her shoulders and gave her an air of mystery, while her long and slender legs never failed to make people turn their heads.
Her beauty and elegance were hard to ignore.
Wendy kept smiling, the look in her eyes clear and confident.
Eris' hands unconsciously clenched into fists.
What on earth had made Wendy change so much in just three years? * A sense of foreboding and desperation rose in her heart.
"How lucky you are, Wendy Finch!"
"Of course I am."
Wendy raised an eyebrow, her expression sharp.
"I have yet to deal with evil people like yourself and avenge the death my mother."
"Stop dreaming, Wendy, you can never beat me!"
"Ha ha, if you say so.But then, if I truly arm no threat to you, I wonder why you're going to such lengths to warn me off?"
"Three years must have really done a lot to you! I see you've become rather eloquent."
"I'm flattered."
It was like punching on air, and Eris' frustration only grew with each strike.She no longer wanted to play word games with Wendy.
"You! Quit from this show!"
Wendy scratched her ear, pretending not to hear.
"What did you say?"
"I said, quit from the cast of this show!"
Eris sneered with disdain.
"Don't think you can win against me just because of what happened today.You're still a hundred years too early to be fantasizing about that! Did you think the entertainment circle is some playground where all you do is run around and have fun? Ha ha, don't be ridiculous! If I expose what happened to you three years ago, your whole career will be over, just like that!"
"Okay then." Wendy nodded.
"That makes sense." Eris grinded her teeth in anger.
Wendy was reacting differently from what she had imagined.
She should be in a panic now, kneeling and begging for her past to be kept hidden.
"Wendy Finch!" Eris shouted.
"You must think I'm joking, but I'm not! I'm telling you, you only have until tomorrow.If you don't quit by then, I will tell everyone that you kept the company of a gigolo when you were nineteen and gave birth to his child a year later!"
Then she leaned close to Wendy, her face twisted into an ugly expression.
"I think everyone will hate you after learning this information, don't you?"