A Script for Danger (Nancy Drew Diaries #10)(32)

“See”—Cora poked me—“that’s what a producer does.”

“Reshoots? What does that mean?” Brian asked, but everyone ignored him.

Then Ronan piped up. “Lali, you may not have to reshoot anything,” he announced.

“Nobody cares what you think!” Alex looked ready to pounce on his former friend, but Spencer held him back.

“Wait, Alex, hear him out,” I urged.

“Alex, I only took this job because I was feeling angry and spiteful that you wouldn’t take my calls,” Ronan said, “but after meeting with Alison—I mean, Nancy—I realized how much I missed being friends with you. I’m so sorry.”

Alex’s face turned redder than a tomato as he tried to contain his anger.

“Did you say you had an idea, Ronan?” Lali asked impatiently.

“Right. Well, I’ve been learning how to do visual effects for a while, so I could replace Brian’s face with the new actor’s in the scenes you’ve already shot. Free of charge, of course. It would mean you don’t have to do reshoots,” Ronan said. “Plus, Brian’s already paid for the extra room at Lightning Post.”

“Really?” Alex asked, still unable to meet Ronan’s eyes.

Ronan nodded.

“Let’s talk,” Lali said, beckoning Ronan over.

“But what about me?” Brian insisted. “I’m under contract!”

Lali gave him a cursory glance and then checked her phone. “Right. Brian, you can discuss that with your lawyer when you get back to L.A. You’re booked on the next flight out.”

“You can’t cast Eldridge Carter in this role,” Brian proclaimed weakly. “Nobody even knows who he is. He hasn’t been in anything.”

“When you finally see The Hamilton Inn,” Alex told him, “you’re going to kick yourself for screwing up your chance to be a part of it. It will be that awesome.”

After Brian had slunk away in a taxi, Alex gave Bess, George, and me gracious hugs and handshakes. “I don’t know how to thank you,” he said. “You’re all getting invitations to the premiere of The Hamilton Inn. You know, provided that we actually finish shooting it.”

“I’m sure you’ll be fine. You got this far, didn’t you?” I assured him. Alex nodded and gave us a friendly wave before getting back to work.

“Thank you, girls,” Lali added. “Would you like to stay and watch the rest of the carnival scene?” she asked. “You are more than welcome.”

I looked at my friends’ tired faces. “I think we’re going to take the night off,” I replied, “but good luck!”

As I walked back to the parking lot with my friends, I asked them, “So, what do you guys want to do tonight?”

George thought about it for approximately one second before replying, “I’m kind of hungry.”

“Oh, maybe we could go to the movies!” Bess exclaimed. “I’ve been dying to see . . .” She caught herself and looked at both of us.

“Or maybe not,” she caught herself.

“Let’s save the movie date for next week,” I said, laughing.





Dear Diary,



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ALEX AND HIS CREW WERE ABLE TO finish shooting The Hamilton Inn with Eldridge Carter, an up-and-coming actor, in the role of Dylan. Alex e-mailed me saying that the film is going to premiere at a prestigious festival. Apparently, the critics are already raving about both the lead performances!

Although I’m happy everything worked out for Alex in the end, I wish that Brian had considered how his pranks would affect other people. If he had just relied on his talent, he would have gotten to the top eventually—without causing so much pain. But he had to learn his lesson the hard way—and he lost everything in the process.

P.S. Kendall wrote to ask if I would ever consider turning my stories of sleuthing into a movie. I laughed at first, but now I’m wondering, Diary. . . . Should I answer the call of Hollywood?



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READ WHAT HAPPENS IN THE NEXT MYSTERY IN THE NANCY DREW DIARIES,


The Red Slippers


“I NEED A THING.” BESS sighed between sips of hot chocolate.

“Christmas was just last month. What more could you possibly need?” George shot back.

Bess rolled her eyes. “Not like that. I mean a thing that defines who I am.”

“I don’t get it. We all know who you are. You’re Bess,” George said with a shrug, turning her attention back to a game on her phone.

George and Bess are cousins and my two best friends. Even though they seem like total opposites—George doesn’t care about looks or clothes, while Bess is a bit of a fashionista; George loves technology and always has the latest gadget, while Bess prefers snail mail to email—they’re as close as sisters. Sometimes, though, George can get so caught up in her Twitter feed that she doesn’t notice the people sitting right in front of her.

In general, I’m somewhere in between: I like to look nice and put together, but I don’t keep with the latest trends; and I like my smartphone, but I’m not obsessed with it. Sometimes I have to be a bridge between them. I could tell this was one of those times.