Remember to Pay the Penalty Fee
The moment the casting director opened his mouth, it all clicked for Avery. Leo had been right, they were absolutely being jerked around. No wonder they'd made her wait so long for such a tiny role.
If she was reading this right, the part the director claimed to have "saved" for her was probably some throwaway character they'd shoehorned into the script at the last minute.
And that whole story about the film crew being on location?
A total lie. They'd likely pulled this stunt because of Leo, or more specifically, because of Stellar Media.
Avery hadn't even been to the Stellar Media headquarters yet, but while she was revising the script for *You Are My Defender* a few days ago, she'd overheard Diana Marks mention that the company often traded advertising sponsorships for roles for their talent.
The production team for *The Gilded Spoon* was probably trying to pull the same move, except they were being much sneakier about it.
When Leo approached them, they saw an opportunity and got greedy.
They agreed to his face, then rushed to rewrite the script to stick her in some pointless role, hoping they could have it both ways: keep Stellar Media's sponsorship money without giving up the part they'd promised.
You could practically see the dollar signs in their eyes.
Leo shot the casting director a smile that was all teeth.
"Saving the role for her? Seriously? Do I look that stupid? I don't have time for people who can't keep their word."
He leaned in, his voice dropping. "But I'll be sure to mention to my uncle how you and Director Miranda Lynch like to play games. What's the point of messing with a newcomer like this?"
He let out a short, sharp laugh and flashed a cocky grin that was just a little unsettling. Then, with a dismissive scoff, he brushed past the man and headed for the door.
But just as Leo was about to leave, something shifted for Avery.
She wasn't ready to go. What this production team did was disgusting.
Did they really think they could just brush her off?
They had a signed contract. She might not even want the lawyer role anymore, but that didn't mean she was going to let them get away with it.
"Hang on a second," Avery said, her voice cutting through the tension. She stepped forward and pulled Leo back by the arm.
From her bag, she produced the contract she'd signed with the film crew. "Look, if you want to hold a fair competition or just recast the part, we have no problem with that, but..." She looked up, her amber eyes locking onto the casting director. "Did you forget we signed this?"
"The second this contract was finalized, the lawyer role belonged to me," she stated plainly. "If the film crew breaks the contract, you have to pay me three times my salary as a penalty."
The contract wasn't as ironclad as the one Owen Bowen had, which stipulated a tenfold penalty.
But three times her salary still came out to fifteen hundred dollars, and every little bit counted.
When they'd signed, the crew probably never thought they'd be called on it, so they'd used a standard extra's agreement instead of a proper actor's contract.
The terms were much simpler, with far fewer loopholes, and right now, that simple contract was the only weapon she needed.
The casting director's eyes flicked over the paper before landing on Avery with a cold glare.
He ignored her completely, plastering on an apologetic smile as he turned back to Leo.
"Mr. Foster, let's just talk about this. I'm sure we can work something out. You want the person you recommended to be in the show, and for the sake of the production, the role we're offering is even better than the lawyer, "
Leo actually laughed this time, cutting him off.
"Do we look like we're desperate for a bit part? You think you can just toss us some random role like you're throwing scraps to a dog?"
He shook his head. No wonder this guy was just a casting director; anyone with such terrible judgment had no business being in the entertainment industry.
Couldn't he see that Avery was running the show now?
Having been so blatantly ignored, Avery frowned. She stepped between the two men. "Director," she said calmly, "I think you'll have better luck negotiating with me. Leo recommended me, but he doesn't have any say in my business."
Leo shrugged. "She's right. I'm just the ride. Talking to me is a waste of your time."
The casting director's fake smile froze on his face. He stared at Avery, his mouth hanging open, but no words came out. What was happening? Wasn't she just some girl Leo had brought along?
"Just do what she says," Leo said, raising his chin. He snatched the contract from Avery's hand and slapped it against the casting director's chest. "We don't want the role anymore. Pay the penalty fee, and you can give the part to whoever you want."
Now the man was starting to panic. The main director had only agreed to let Leo's pick play the lawyer because of the huge sponsorship from Stellar Media.
They'd figured they could just swap in a different role for Avery and no one would be the wiser, but that plan was clearly dead in the water.
They were holding out for the lawyer role, period.
But that role... long before Leo ever showed up, the crew had already promised it to a minor actor from Zenith Entertainment. In fact, a lot of the smaller roles were filled by Zenith talent. Why? Because Zenith Entertainment was the show's biggest investor.
The casting director didn't have the authority to fix this. "Mr. Foster, could you just wait a minute?" he pleaded. "Let me call Director Miranda Lynch and see what she says."
"What Miranda Lynch says has nothing to do with me," Leo shot back.
"We're leaving. And make sure you pay that penalty. Don't even think about skipping out on it. We have a legal department, and even if it's not a lot of money, you owe us."
He straightened his sleeves, gave the casting director one last icy look, and turned on his heel.
Avery had only pulled out the contract to make a point and get under their skin. Mission accomplished. She followed Leo out of the building.
Once they were out by the road, Leo's playboy act vanished.
His face darkened, and he kicked at a bush on the curb to blow off some steam.
"Damn it, I've never been disrespected like that before," he seethed.
"No, I've gotta let Julian know. When this garbage show starts looking for investors, the Atlas Group is out."
As he talked, he pulled out his phone and started firing off a text.
The casual way he did it showed this wasn't the first time he'd had to handle something like this.
Avery didn't stop him. Getting treated like that would piss anyone off, especially someone as proud as Leo.
But when she heard him mention the Atlas Group, her eyes narrowed.
It seemed her guess had been right on the money: Julian Shaw really might be the one in charge there.
But if he was the big boss of a huge corporation, what was he doing playing around at an entertainment company like Stellar Media?
"Freaking amateurs, like we need their stupid role," Leo grumbled after sending the message, still fuming.
He turned and spat in the direction of the set.
Then, as if worried Avery was upset about losing the part, his tone softened.
"Hey, I'll find you a much bigger role, I promise. Don't even think about this garbage production; they'd just walk all over you."
Avery snapped out of her thoughts and shrugged. "I'm heading back to New York in a few days anyway. If everything goes according to plan, I'll be on the set of *You Are My Defender* soon enough."
She glanced back toward the set one last time. She didn't care about losing the part, but she made a mental note of the director's name: Miranda Lynch.
Trying to pull a bait-and-switch on her and Leo? This wasn't over. Not by a long shot.