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‘I want Isabelle to do press for a movie she shot last year about a bad marriage. Isabelle plays someone married to a scumbag liar. She can do interviews and talk about how she connected with her character on a deep and personal level, which will be a great way for her to allude to Erin being the real bad apple in the relationship without really saying it. The internet will love it. Way more than some boring press release refuting the claims.’

Baker was confused. ‘What movie is that?’

‘It doesn’t exist. I thought that was obvious,’ Alex said.

‘What? How are you going to…’

‘I’ll figure something out,’ Alex assured him. She wasn’t totally convinced of Isabelle’s story, but for now, she had to proceed as though she was. Until evidence proved it one way or the other. If it turned out that Erin was telling the truth, Alex would drop Isabelle like a bad habit.

But if not, then Alex would attack Erin with everything she had. Nothing was worse for the cause than a pretend victim. Even worse if they stole the story from a real one.

The trouble was, Alex didn’t have the first fucking clue who the real victim was anymore.

Twenty-Six

‘Three offers? Really?’ Leigh asked over the phone the day after the Selma Haynes interview had aired.

‘Yep. In one morning,’ Erin said, her tone light and chipper.

Leigh hadn’t ever actually heard her sound happy before. It was quite a difference.

‘That’s great, Erin. I’m glad it’s all happening so fast for you. You deserve to get back to what you do.’

‘You don’t know how great it feels to know there’s work for me now.’

‘You should take as much work as you can,’ Leigh advised. ‘Get back out there. It’s good for people to know that the industry took your side. As they should.’

‘You were right, Leigh. This changed everything. People are getting in touch, old friends I haven’t seen in ages.’ She breathed. ‘I should have done this years ago. I feel like my life is starting again. I’d forgotten it could be like this.’

‘Old friends? I like the sound of that. It would be great to be seen out and about with these old friends if you’re up to it.’

‘Whatever you say,’ Erin said. ‘I’m so grateful to you right now. I don’t even know how to say it. I didn’t ever want to talk about any of this, and if you hadn’t gotten Selma Haynes, I probably never would have—not like that. She was the only journalist who could have brought me back from the dead. Which is what I was.’

Leigh was thrilled to hear Erin sound positive. ‘And now they trust you again. So… Go get ‘em.’

They hung up. Leigh felt good about this turnaround. Though she didn’t imagine that was the end of things. No way was Alex going to take this lying down.

Regarding Alex, Leigh still couldn’t shake her confusion about her. She was the reason the Selma Haynes interview could even go ahead. Which meant that Alex had shot herself in the foot, and for what? Because Leigh had talked to a doctor for five minutes?

Leigh’s phone rang, and it was the woman in question.

‘Hi,’ Leigh said evenly, totally unable to predict what Alex would be calling about. The woman was a total wildcard.

‘Leigh,’ Alex greeted her. ‘Having a good morning?’

‘Not bad. How’s yours?’

‘I won’t lie to you; it’s been a shocker,’ Alex sighed. ‘I just had a conversation with Isabelle. I thought her head was gonna spin fully off her neck at one point.’

‘I’m sorry to hear that,’ Leigh said and then added quickly, ‘For your sake, at least. Isabelle can go to hell, obviously. Oh, but while I’ve got you, how is your mother doing?’

Leigh heard the smile in Alex’s voice. ‘She’s OK. She came around the next day, like you said. She’s back at home, healing up.’

‘Whose, err, taking care of her?’ Leigh asked carefully.

‘Her husband. Hercurrentone, that is.’

‘Does he know… anything?’