Mind Your Own Business the Norm of This Circle
Avery handed the invitation to Wyatt. "Here, hold this for me," she said. "I'll come up with an excuse to get out of it in a few days."
She knew there was bad blood between Shiguang Entertainment and Stellar Media.
She'd have to be a complete idiot to actually show up at Willa Patton's birthday party.
Shiguang had poached a whole slate of actors from Stellar, including Roman Duke, and burned every bridge on their way out.
And since Willa was inviting Avery, someone she'd just met, it was a safe bet she'd invited all the others, too.
If they all ran into each other, someone would definitely try to start something.
It wasn't that Avery was afraid; she just didn't have the energy to waste on that kind of drama.
Besides, what Willa had said earlier didn't add up.
She'd told Franklin Price she'd run into Avery, but Avery distinctly remembered Willa being the one to call out to her first.
It was obvious she'd never planned on inviting Franklin at all.
He had been on set with her for ages, and she'd never shown any interest.
Yet she was inviting Avery, a practical stranger she'd barely exchanged a few sentences with?
Seriously, did Willa think she was that stupid?
"I'll look into it," Wyatt said, taking the invitation and tucking it into Avery's handbag.
"Yeah, I want to know what her game is, too," Avery replied, her face unreadable.
They started walking back toward the hotel. Halfway there, they bumped into Melina Warner.
Melina was still in full costume, elaborate headpiece and all, staring with a tormented expression at the pastries in a little shop window.
Her young assistant stood beside her, anxiously gripping her arm and looking like she was about to physically drag her away.
The poor girl had a metabolism that made her gain weight just by looking at food, and she'd been on a strict diet for two months to look right for the role.
There was no way her assistant could let her break now.
Melina knew it, too. With a visible slump of her shoulders, she finally tore her eyes away from the window. The whole scene was so absurdly relatable that Avery couldn't help but be amused. She raised her eyebrows and called out.
"Melina!"
Hearing her name, Melina turned, her eyes crinkling into a smile as she hurried over.
Even though Avery had been on set for two days, this was the first time they'd actually crossed paths.
Melina had been filming action sequences with the B-unit while Avery was with the A-unit, shooting dramatic scenes.
"Avery!" Melina was surprisingly warm, probably because they'd gotten along so well at dinner the other night. "Are you done for the day?"
Avery nodded. "Just heading back to the hotel."
Melina pointed helplessly at her head. "I've got a night scene. We're shooting it soon."
Avery glanced at the heavy-looking headpiece. "Looks like you're in for a long night." Changing the subject, she asked casually, "By the way, I ran into Willa Patton earlier. She invited me to her birthday party. Any idea what kind of gift I should bring?"
"Oh, a birthday party?" Melina's expression froze. Her eyes lingered on Avery's face for a beat too long, and she pursed her lips in a way that looked completely unnatural. "I'm not sure. I don't really go to those kinds of things."
She was suddenly desperate to change the subject. Checking her watch, Melina said, "Avery, I have to get to set. Let's talk later, when we have time." With a hurried wave, she and her assistant slipped into a minivan parked at the curb.
Avery pretended not to notice how completely Melina had dodged the question, a faint smile on her lips as she watched the van drive off. But once it disappeared around the corner, her smile faded.
"She was avoiding your question," Wyatt said in a low voice.
Avery nodded, her tone flat. "Yeah, that was a pretty strong reaction. It means she knows about the party, and she knows there's something shady about it." She sighed. "Whatever's going on, it has nothing to do with me. I'm not going anyway."
Her gaze dropped to the pavement, a familiar disappointment settling in as they continued back to the hotel.
The entertainment industry really was just like everyone said, not the right place to make friends.
She'd tried to be so careful, steering clear of the big three companies, and she'd still almost walked right into a trap.
As for Melina avoiding the question, not even giving her a small heads-up...
Avery couldn't say she was angry. Disappointed, maybe.
After all, no one was obligated to look out for you.
*Mind your own business.* That was the first rule of survival in this industry.
It was fine. They had just met. A polite, surface-level friendship was all they needed.
Back at the hotel, Alden Pierce pulled up some videos to help Avery with her action choreography.
He wasn't a professional fight coordinator, but he'd done enough period dramas to know his way around a sword fight.
He couldn't move with the grace of a stunt director anymore, but he could definitely spot bad form.
Besides, Avery had been learning military combatives with Wyatt and Shane Croft, so her coordination and core strength were solid. With Wyatt there to practice with, learning the moves wasn't as hard as she'd feared.
Still, her heart wasn't in it tonight. She finally called it quits a little after eleven.
After a shower, she got into bed and pulled out her phone to set an alarm.
It wasn't right to keep making Wyatt wake her up every morning.
Just as she unlocked her phone, she saw a new message from "Analysis Master."
It was from over an hour ago. She'd been so focused on practicing that she'd completely forgotten about their arrangement.
She opened the message, and the first name she saw was Felicia Moss.
Avery blinked. She had totally forgotten about Felicia, the actress she'd had a minor run-in with on that TV drama. She never would have guessed Felicia was one of the main people behind the online hate campaign. The other person listed was Nolan Burke, Roman Duke's agent.
Below those two, the message noted that Daybreak and Evergreen Media also had a hand in it, but they weren't leading the charge. Avery figured they just saw an opportunity. They knew Stellar had signed her, so when the online attacks started, they jumped on the bandwagon to pile on.
Surprisingly, the Sterling family had stayed out of it entirely. That, Avery had not expected.
In the chat, after sending the list of names, Analysis Master had casually added another message.
**Analysis Master:** Do you need the dirt on the actors managed by Felicia Moss and Nolan Burke? I can provide it. Guaranteed to be real.
Avery stared at the screen, a little speechless. Was this guy seriously trying to keep making money off of her? Didn't he have enough work in the legal world? Still, the offer was tempting.
**Legal Person Does Not Sleep:** Let's talk price. If it's too expensive, I can't afford it.
As far as she knew, that kind of dirt was incredibly expensive.
She'd only just booked one drama; she hadn't made much yet and definitely didn't have that kind of cash.
The money in her bag was for dealing with the Sterlings, and she couldn't touch it.
Besides, once that war really started, a hundred and fifty thousand dollars might not even make a dent.
She was still trying to figure out how to turn it into more.
**Analysis Master:** Felicia Moss is $10,000. Nolan Burke manages three actors. Package deal for all three is $50,000.
**Legal Person Does Not Sleep:** Are you trying to rob me?
**Analysis Master:** That *is* the discounted price. If I sold this to them directly, I'd charge way more.
**Legal Person Does Not Sleep:** Can't afford it.
After typing that, Avery switched to her chat with Diana Marks and forwarded all the information from Analysis Master.
After all, she had a whole company behind her now.
As long as they knew who was behind the attacks, Stellar Media knew exactly how to fight back.
And if they really wanted dirt on Felicia Moss and Roman Duke, they had plenty of ways to find it themselves.