Chapter 23
We are all frozen to the spot. I look Kassy in the eye and try to brazen it out.
‘Are you sure it was me?’ I look around with a confused expression to see if anyone could believe such a tale.
‘This isn’t sour grapes because I chose Henri, is it?
I can understand you’re mad at me, Kassy, but this accusation has come at rather a convenient time, hasn’t it?
Besides, there’s no way I knew you would be dumped or else I wouldn’t have chosen him over Marcel or Brad. ’
Henri frowns at me. I’m not exactly helping myself.
‘I didn’t mean it like that. You’re very nice, Henri. We’d all love a chance to get to know you.’
I feel dreadful deflecting the truth, but it is essential I sow the seeds of doubt.
It’s fine me getting axed from the show but not fine if Porscha does some digging – even a light scratch on the surface – and finds out the mystery man is Cam.
I’m certain she would sack him rather than let him be with a woman who wasn’t her.
‘I see. So, you would have chosen my Brad? What a traitor!’ Binky yells at me. She too is excessively livid at being dumped from the island and is acting as though it is all my fault.
How am I enemy number one all of a sudden?
‘Keep rolling,’ shouts Porscha, running towards us with her head turned at a sharp angle towards a nearby bush. ‘This is pure car crash. Stay on Kassy, and then keep switching between her and Libby.’
Two camera operators, dressed in black like a pair of snipers, peep out from behind the bush, giving Porscha a thumbs up as she passes by, one hand to her earpiece, the other pointing here, there and everywhere.
‘Good. Cameras five and six, you stay with Carlton and Giovanni. Twelve, you stay on Henri, and camera eleven, you pan out to the whole group. Can we get aerial in here pronto? Move it, people. Move it!’
So much is happening right now. I scan the scene.
Destiny is smoking a cigarette and talking to one of the assistant producers in hushed mumbles.
They keep peering over at me and then quickly back to each other.
Porscha is running from bush to bush to make sure the snipers know who their targets are.
Runners are fiddling with lights and big furry microphone booms. And Kassy and Binky are openly sobbing.
Brad and Marcel are having their backs slapped and doing manly ‘bro’ hugs with fist bumping and promises of seeing each other on the outside.
‘I need my vape back,’ Kassy yells to one of the runners. ‘Then I’m going to the Beach Hut to tell the whole world what a fucking fix this all is.’
‘I’ll come with you,’ agrees Binky. ‘It’s an absolute fucking disgrace.
You all should be ashamed of yourselves.
Treating us like easy meat.’ She sweeps a furious glare around the area while all the runners and producers do an excellent job of professionally ignoring her.
She spots Destiny sucking away on her ciggie.
‘Unless… Destiny, hun. Is there any chance I’ll get picked to come back on as a bombshell? ’
Destiny throws a sympathetic glance towards her and shrugs.
‘I will go to the Beach Hut too.’ We see Mimi, not one to be left out, wading into the slanging match. She puts her hand on her hip. ‘After all, she nearly chose Carlton, and it could have been me being dumped. I’m so traumatised right now.’
‘I didn’t nearly choose Carlton!’ I say. ‘You specifically told me to leave him out of this, so that you could have him.’
Oops.
It is now Carlton’s turn to look livid. He yells to Mimi, ‘You deliberately ruined my chance of happiness with Libby just for your own selfish gain?’
Mimi visibly gulps. She has lost her words. Then she looks at me. ‘She didn’t want to steal you anyway. She said she wasn’t interested in any of you. You’re all just one big, oily muscle-mountain to her.’
All the men turn to stare at me.
‘No. Of course you’re not all one big, oily muscle-mountain.’ I blow my cheeks out. I’m never going to come out of this in a good light. ‘I think you’ll find that I’ve been taken way out of context. The truth is, I think I should be the one to leave the—’
‘Stop talking! Stop it,’ cuts in Porscha. ‘Libby, with me. Now!’
I immediately do as I am told.
‘Just tell us the truth!’ yells Kassy as we pass her. ‘Which one of them were you snogging behind the bins?’
Oh Christ.
Apart from anything, the truth sounds far from classy. I am mortified.
The men look at each other with blank expressions before the denials and accusations begin.
* * *
Porscha all but manhandles me over to the PANTRY and through the secret door into the safe space. Before she has a chance to say anything, Cam bursts through the door. We trade looks.
‘Cameron,’ Porscha says with almost a sad tone. ‘I think it’s better if I deal with this alone. Woman to woman.’
‘But I want to explain. It wasn’t Libby’s—’
‘Leave us!’ Porscha yells at him. ‘I said I’ll deal with it.
You get back to make sure all the carnage is captured on film.
I want tears, tantrums, meltdowns and everyone to take turns in the Beach Hut.
We need to really capitalise on this situation.
I want maximum emotional collapse. Get Kassy to reveal she was catching real feelings for Henri.
Get him to say that he is devastated that Libby broke them up.
And poke that trauma of Binky’s. The one where her last boyfriend ran off with her dad.
Or is that Brad? Poke something.’ She gives him a sharp look. ‘Don’t just stand there. Do your job.’
Cam ignores her.
Suddenly Porscha’s walkie-talkie goes ballistic with people yelling that they need instructions as though she’s ordered a military air strike. While she’s distracted, Cam smiles at me.
‘Are you okay?’ he says gently. He lifts his arm as though to comfort me, before thinking better of it.
I nod slowly. ‘Yes, thanks. I think it’s probably better if I leave the villa. I seem to be causing a lot of trouble.’
‘Are you sure?’ he says, giving me a tender look.
‘Yes. I’m sure.’ I give him a shy smile. I hope he realises I am giving up the chance to win one hundred thousand dollars to spend my last few days with him.
‘Well, you’ve certainly been a big hit on the show,’ he says. ‘You’re really something special. You don’t just light up the screen, you light them all up. If you weren’t here there would be no show.’
My heart skips a beat.
‘And you know, you could go on to win it.’
‘Cam,’ I say, my voice barely audible. ‘That’s not the only reason I came here.’
Instantly, he gets my drift.
‘Don’t mind me, will you?’ screams Porscha, causing us to jump. ‘Cam, back to work. Now! Unless you’d like to admit to something? Or maybe Libby has something she wants to get off her enormous chest?’
It sounds like a threat. There’s no way I can drop him in it. I will take our secret to the grave. It was in the blind spot. It’s Kassy’s word against mine. An upstanding member of the teaching community.
Cam shakes his head, sighing heavily, and gives me one last look, his face a mask of fury. He keeps his voice calm and even. ‘Porscha, Libby has formally requested to leave the show. Libby, you can go collect your things. I will meet you at the entrance. See you soon.’
I watch him leave.
Porscha reaches out, yanking at my microphone pack and switching it off. ‘Now, listen to me. This… this crush that you have developed for a member of my staff is not happening. You understand me? IT. IS. NOT. HAPPENING.’
My heart is hammering in my chest. She is bloody terrifying. I’m so sick of being bullied by authority figures like her. And to play with people’s lives as though they mean nothing? I feel anger beginning to boil away deep inside me and, from somewhere, I find my voice.
‘No, Porscha. It is happening. I will leave this villa, and the show, and then I will be doing whatever the hell I want to do. And if that is to get to know a member of your staff after filming has finished, then I will!’ I stand, folding my arms in defiance.
My blood pressure must be sky-high as adrenaline whooshes round my body.
She leans in, towering over me. My vow to leave the show and run off into the sunset with Cam is not landing well.
‘I’ll tell you what is going to happen. There’s no way you are leaving this villa.
You will stay in here where I can keep an eye on you.
You are going to go back out there and act all surprised at Kassy’s outburst. Kassy is going to admit she made the whole thing up about seeing you kissing someone who is not in the villa.
She will point the finger at Carlton. Mimi will become hysterical.
That will reignite the whole love triangle which, by the way, has fizzled out now with your ridiculous crush on Cameron.
’ She shakes her head at me, throwing up her arms in frustration.
‘Such an inconvenience. We had to re-edit a whole episode.’
My jaw drops to the floor. It sounds awfully scripted to me. And she hasn’t listened to a word I’ve said.
‘I want to see you flirt with Carlton in front of Mimi to make her jealous. She will provide some much-needed entertainment for the nation, and you will play the part of the callous British villain. Which is why we flew you all the way to Mexico in the first place.’
I stand tall. ‘No. I won’t do it. I’m leaving.’
I’d like to see her try to stop me.
‘Okay. If you leave the show, then I will fire Cameron.’
What?
Porscha looks deadly serious. ‘Not just that. I’ll bad-mouth him to all the networks. He’ll never get another job in TV production. And it’ll be all your fault.’
She looks at me with daggers in her eyes.
‘You wouldn’t.’
She raises her eyebrows. She totally would.
‘If I so much as suspect that you are communicating with him in secret, I will sack him and I will edit this show to make sure neither of you ever works again. You’re a teacher, right?
Who will hire you after they’ve seen you cussing live on TV and sleeping with every single guy in here?
We go out to over ten million viewers. Including in the UK. ’
I gulp. ‘But that’s not true. I never swear.
Well, just that once. And I’d never sleep with anyone, especially not on TV.
’ I’m starting to panic now. I’ve seen the show.
I’ve seen how they can misrepresent the Islanders.
I’d be just another bitter contestant that no one would believe because the damage would be done. There’s no smoke without fire.
We lock eyes. Hers are hard and full of malicious intent. Mine are full of panic and worry for my and Cam’s professional futures. I feel faint and reach out to steady myself.
‘You have ten seconds to decide,’ Porscha says coldly. ‘Are you in? Or out?’
I am struggling to know what to say. ‘So, let me be clear. You are threatening to ruin my career if I leave the show?’
‘Correct.’
‘And you are threatening to ruin Cam’s career if I have anything to do with him, romantically or not?’
‘Correct. You are not to encourage him with this childish crush you have developed. Do you not think we see this all the time? He is a nice guy. Why get him fired just because of some unrequited feelings you have for him? Poor man. Such a shame for him to suffer because of your selfishness.’
‘That isn’t… That’s not how it… You’re wrong. You can’t do this. You can’t blackmail us like this.’
‘I can and I am. You signed all your rights away before you came here. It’s all in the small print.’ Porscha lets out a bored sigh. ‘Your time is up. In or out?’
Oh my God. I feel so confused. I wish my sister was here. All of a sudden, I yearn to be back home. Back at home with her and Tyrone, laughing and joking, hanging out, watching films. My simple, safe life.
‘What if I leave quietly? Tonight? I don’t see Cam ever again. He keeps his job, and nobody’s careers get damaged?’ I plead.
‘Don’t try to haggle with me, and stop telling me how to do my job. We’ve had double the viewing figures since you appeared on-screen with your ridiculous and pathetic carrying on. For some reason, the public seem to like your car-crash approach to life.’
Oh God. Has the whole world been laughing at me?
Porscha flicks her shiny mane of red hair over her shoulder and leans towards me. ‘I’ll spell it out for you. More viewers means more sponsorship. More sponsorship means more money. More money means another season. Simple. Now answer the fucking question. In or out?’
I lower my head. Every instinct inside me is to fight back but this seems like an impossible situation. The gamble that I leave, and she ruins our careers, is too high a risk. I need more time to assess the situation to find a proper solution.
‘I’m in,’ I say, looking her square in the eye. ‘But you have to promise not to sack Cam. None of this is his fault. He hasn’t done anything wrong. You’re right. I tried to approach him… but he never… He’s very professional. There’s nothing going on between us.’
Porscha tries to weigh up whether I’m telling the truth. It will suit her to imagine that I came on to Cam, and that he is not interested in me.
‘Done. I don’t want to see you two within a mile of each other from now on.
Is that clear? Now, slap a smile on it because you have a hunky Frenchman to drool over.
I expect you to make Carlton and Giovanni jealous but not a word to Amber or Mimi.
Not that they’d figure it out, the empty-headed bimbos. ’
I feel sick.
‘And by the way, you will be sleeping in the communal bedroom with the others from now on. No more being a hermit. It’s time to be a team player.’