Part 29 (1/2)

”I do! I've met him! The real him!” Becky cried. It sounded like they were wrestling. ”That's not him.”

”Ben? Pascual? Which one of you is it?”

I heard Pascual's voice then. ”Ferrara, this isn't the way you said the scene was going to go.”

”Pascual, let me go! She lied to you! Where's James? Where's Jasper! Get me down!”

My heart surged with relief as I felt him working at the ropes. He couldn't quite figure out how to get them off me, but he did figure out how to release my legs from the suspension and my feet touched the floor. He took the blindfold off next and then unhooked me from the track, which freed my arms. I still had gauntlets made of rope running up my forearms and s.h.i.+ns, but they didn't hinder me from moving now.

I turned around to find Becky had Ferrara in a headlock. I guess those self-defense cla.s.ses her parents made her take were good. I slipped the Gucci scarf from Becky's shoulders and got it around Ferrara's wrists.

”You b.i.t.c.h!” she shouted. ”Now who's committing a.s.sault?”

”Enough. I've had it with you and the videos and the threats to my family.” I stepped back so I could see her face and I put my back against the door. ”Now we're going to talk.”

I noticed Pascual had put his clothes back together, at least. He was in a typical James-style suit, no tie, his jacket slung over one shoulder. He stood to one side, looking calmer than I would have expected.

”Becky, put the camera on.”

Becky did as I asked, but she gestured at me, as if asking if I wanted to cover up or something. I looked down. There wasn't much to see now, with the flying rig hanging down and my legs together. Plus I didn't care. Nudity didn't make me weak unless I made it out to, so I ignored it.

”Pascual, do you mind telling me what's going on here?”

”Honestly, Karina? I'm hoping to find out. I mean, when you take a Lord Lightning gig, you know that a whole lot of secrets come as part of the territory. I've been a stand-in for Jasper for years now. h.e.l.l, that first six months he was so cagey I thought he was some kind of stand-in, too.” He took a step toward Ferrara.

”Uh-uh. Stay put. I'll tell you what's happening. Ferrara has been trying to blackmail him for months, claiming he married her and now she's ent.i.tled to half his net worth.”

Pascual looked at her curiously. ”Using that video we shot?”

”Yes. She's claiming that's Jasper. Or as she calls him, James.”

”Well, he couldn't go do it himself, so I stood in.” Pascual shrugged.

Ferrara sobbed.

”All right, Ferrara, spill it,” I said.

She shook her head. ”I'm not telling you anything. You have no proof. All you have is a lot of lies. It's a house of cards. Just let me go and I'll never bother you again.”

”I believe that about as much as I believe your lies.” I folded my arms. ”Blackmail seems to be something you understand, though. So how about this? You tell me everything that's been going on, and then you get the h.e.l.l out of our lives for good, or-” I paused to think of how to word it, but she took it as a dramatic pause.

”Or what?” she snapped.

”Or I'll have you thrown out of the Crimson Glove Society for filming that ravishment scene with Vanette you showed me. You know, the one where you said she was being raped? I hear it was quite a specialty of hers.”

”How do you...?” She stared at me.

”I imagine the society takes very, very poorly to anyone flouting their rules. I heard stories when I was a trainee about how they ruined someone they expelled, financially and socially.”

This time when she started to cry I think they were the first real tears I'd seen from her. She struggled to hold them in, and made an ugly snorting sound, nothing like the dramatic weeping she'd shown so many times before. ”Well, it hardly matters, since I'm ruined anyway!”

Pascual went and dabbed her nose with a handkerchief and this time I didn't stop him.

”What do you mean, ruined?”

”In the divorce from Huntington. He was an imbecile, wrecked our personal finances first and then looted the company. I inherited a company on the verge of bankruptcy. And then I find out our biggest earner is going to retire? I had no choice. I won't go back to a life of dest.i.tution! I'm too old to model now. I've already sold off all the property I could to try to pay off the company's debts, but without continual income from the Lord Lightning franchise, we're sunk.”

”And forced marriage was the best plan you could come up with to keep him?”

Her only answer was to cry harder. Pascual put an arm around her.

I looked at him. ”You know what? I think you're the one who is actually legally married to her.”

”I know,” he said, and pulled her close so that she was crying on his shoulder. ”That's what Jasper told me.”

Ferrara's head snapped up. ”Since when are you in cahoots with him?”

”Since he explained what you were trying to do. He knew it had to be me or Ben in the video. He took us both for a long car ride and I spilled the beans. There's only one reason I made all those videos with you Ferrara, the marriage one, the wedding night one-”

”Why?” She looked up through mascara-damp eyes.

”Because I love you. I've been in love with you since we first met. I mean, sure, I knew you were interested in Jasper, but I had to hope that once you realized he was never going to give in, you'd realize I was waiting to take his place, once again.” He hugged her then, and reached behind her and undid the knot in the scarf, and held her while she cried. I took the scarf and handed it back to Becky, who wrapped it around my waist like a sarong.

Someone knocked on the door. I opened it and was relieved to see James standing there. He slipped into the room and closed the door behind him.

”Where have you been?” I demanded.

”Catching Phil Betancourt and delivering him to the police, who want him in connection with a certain hotel camera p.o.r.n scandal,” he said coolly. ”I see you've been busy, as well.” He nodded to Pascual. ”Did you get a confession out of her?”

”Yes, I did,” I said, poking him in the ribs. ”Thanks to Becky, too. She's got it all on camera.”

”Let me see it.”

Becky handed him the camera, which had a small screen that stuck out from it like a wing. James took his phone from his pocket and used the headphones to plug into the sound jack. He watched, his face betraying no emotion while he did.

When it was done he said to Pascual, ”Are you still interested in the plan we talked about?”

Pascual brightened. ”Very much so. More so after hearing what she said about the company.”

”Good. Go get into costume. Take her with you. I'll meet you downstairs by the stage.” He ushered them out of the room. ”Now, Karina, you and I need to get into costume, too. We're going to do just the first two minutes of 'Balladeer.' Mand.i.n.ka is waiting in the back room. Becky, you can come too, if you like, or go out and get in a good spot for the show. I really am going to want a lot of good video of this one.”

”I'll do that!” She checked the camera. ”There's plenty of memory left!”

We went down a set of back stairs and then into the small private dining room that had been turned into an impromptu green room. I changed quickly into my show costume and Mand.i.n.ka swooped down, surprised me by kissing me on both cheeks, and then redid my makeup.

The stage at the far end of the restaurant was small, so instead of the whole ensemble, it was only seven of us dancing, including James, Ben, Pascual, and Roland. So each woman had a partner for while James was singing. I was used to being paired with Pascual.